Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Henlow. Before diving in I would like to find out the remaining lease term.

Assuming the lease is recorded at the land registry - and 99.9% are in Henlow - then the leasehold title will always include the short particulars of the lease, namely the date; the term; and the original parties. From a conveyancing perspective such details then enable any prospective buyer and lender to confirm that any lease they are looking at is the one relevant to that title.For any other purpose, such as confirming how long the term was granted for and calculating what is left, then the register should be sufficient on it's own.

There are only 62 years unexpired on my flat in Henlow. I am keen to get lease extension but my freeholder is missing. What options are available to me?

On the basis that you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be extended by the magistrate. However, you will be required to prove that you or your lawyers have used your best endeavours to locate the freeholder. In some cases an enquiry agent may be useful to try and locate and prepare a report to be used as evidence that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer in relation to devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court covering Henlow.

Back In 2009, I bought a leasehold house in Henlow. Conveyancing and Nottingham Building Society mortgage went though with no issue. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1994. The conveyancing practitioner in Henlow who acted for me is not around.Any advice?

The first thing you should do is make enquiries of the Land Registry to be sure that this person is indeed the new freeholder. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Henlow conveyancing practitioner to do this as it can be done on-line for a few pound. You should note that regardless, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

What are your top tips when it comes to finding a Henlow conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?

When appointing a solicitor for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Henlow conveyancing firm) it is imperative that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We recommend that you speak with several firms including non Henlow conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions could be helpful:

• How familiar is the firm with lease extension legislation?

How many lease extensions have they conducted in Henlow in the last twenty four months?

All being well we will complete our sale of a £375000 flat in Henlow on Thursday in a week. The management company has quoted £336 for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and 3 years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Henlow?

For most leasehold sales in Henlow conveyancing will involve, queries regarding the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :

• Answering conveyancing due diligence questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Henlow
• Supplying insurance information
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your solicitor will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Henlow leasehold premises is £350. For Henlow conveyancing transactions it is customary for the seller to pay for these costs. The landlord or their agents are under no legal obligation to answer such questions most will be willing to do so - albeit often at exorbitant prices where the fees bear little relation to the work involved. Unfortunately there is no law that requires fixed charges for administrative tasks. Neither is there any legal time frame by which they are required to supply the information.

Henlow Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Questions you should ask before Purchasing

The best form of lease arrangement is if the freehold title is in the ownership of the leaseholders. In this scenario the lessees have being in charge if their destiny and although a managing agent is usually employed if the building is larger than a house conversion, the managing agent employed by the leaseholders. The answer will be helpful as a) areas could cause problems for the block as the communal areas may start to deteriorate where services are not paid for b) if the leaseholders have a dispute with the managing agents you will want to have all the details Where a Henlow lease has fewer than eighty years it will affect the value of the flat. Check with your bank that they are willing to lend given the lease term. A short lease means that you will almost definitely have to extend the lease sooner rather than later and you need to have some idea of how much this would cost. Remember, in most cases you would be be obliged to have owned the residence for a couple of years in order to be legally able to extend the lease.

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Lease Extensions in Henlow