I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Lake District. Before diving in I want to be sure as to the remaining lease term.

If the lease is registered - and almost all are in Lake District - 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.

Planning to sign contracts shortly on a studio apartment in Lake District. Conveyancing solicitors inform me that they report fully tomorrow. What should I be looking out for?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Lake District should include some of the following:

• Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, landlord

The total extent of the premises. This will be the flat itself but could also incorporate a loft or cellar if appropriate.

Will you be prohibited or prevented from having pets in the property?

Whether your lease has a provision for a reserve fund?

The landlord’s rights to access the flat you be made aware that your landlord has rights of access and I know how much notice s/he must provide.

Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your property and do you know what it means in practice?

Responsibility for repairing the window frames For details of the information to be included in your report on your leasehold property in Lake District please ask your conveyancer in advance of your conveyancing in Lake District

I own a leasehold flat in Lake District. Conveyancing and Norwich and Peterborough Building Society mortgage organised. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the freehold. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1994. The conveyancing practitioner in Lake District who previously acted has long since retired.Do I pay?

The first thing you should do is make enquiries of HMLR to be sure that this person is in fact the new freeholder. You do not need to instruct a Lake District conveyancing lawyer to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for a few pound. Rest assured that regardless, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Lake District from the perspective of speeding up the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Lake District can be reduced where you get in touch lawyers the minute you market your property and ask them to collate the leasehold information needed by the purchasers’ representatives.
• Many landlords or Management Companies in Lake District levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should discover the fee that they propose to charge. The management information can be applied for as soon as you have a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The average time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most frequent cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in Lake District.

Some Lake District leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, it would be prudent to place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are financially capable of paying the annual service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their lawyers.

If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should ensure that you have the original share document. Organising a duplicate share certificate is often a time consuming process and frustrates many a Lake District home move. If a duplicate share certificate is required, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (where applicable) for this sooner rather than later.

You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but you should verify this by asking your solicitors. A buyer’s lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to to exchange contracts if the lease term is under 80 years. It is therefore essential at an as soon as possible that you consider whether the lease term for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

All being well we will complete the disposal of our £225000 garden flat in Lake District next week. The management company has quoted £336 for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and previous years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge such fees for a leasehold conveyance in Lake District?

Lake District conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes usually necessitates administration charges levied by managing agents :

• Completing pre-exchange questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Lake District
• 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 Lake District leasehold premises is £350. For Lake District 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.

I am the registered owner of a 1st floor flat in Lake District, conveyancing formalities finalised in 1996. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Comparable properties in Lake District with over 90 years remaining are worth £238,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £60 invoiced annually. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2080

With 55 years unexpired the likely cost is going to be between £26,600 and £30,800 plus professional fees.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to supply the actual costs without more comprehensive due diligence. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt additional concerns that need to be taken into account and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward based on this information without first getting professional advice.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Lake District