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

If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and 99.9% are in Lisvane - 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.

I own a leasehold house in Lisvane. Conveyancing and Accord Mortgages Ltd mortgage organised. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1994. The conveyancing practitioner in Lisvane who previously acted has now retired.Any advice?

First make enquiries of HMLR to make sure that this person is in fact the new freeholder. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Lisvane conveyancing solicitor to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. You should note that regardless, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

I am employed by a reputable estate agency in Lisvane where we have experienced a number of leasehold sales put at risk as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given contradictory information from local Lisvane conveyancing firms. Please can you confirm whether the seller of a flat can initiate the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

As long as the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser can avoid having to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

An alternative approach is to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the purchaser.

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Lisvane with the aim of expediting the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Lisvane can be reduced where you appoint lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and request that they start to collate the leasehold documentation needed by the purchasers’ lawyers.
• The majority freeholders or Management Companies in Lisvane charge for providing management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the actual amount of the charges. The management information sought as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most frequent reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Lisvane.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s approval? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Lisvane leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or laying down wooden flooring necessitate a licence issued by the Landlord approving such works. Where you dont have the approvals to hand you should not communicate with the landlord without contacting your conveyancer first.
• A minority of Lisvane leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers put in hand financial (bank) and professional references. Any bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are financially capable of paying the yearly 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 actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their solicitors.
• If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should ensure that you have the original share certificate. Organising a re-issued share certificate can be a time consuming process and slows down many a Lisvane home move. If a new share is necessary, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (where applicable) for this at the earliest opportunity.

What are the frequently found problems that you witness in leases for Lisvane properties?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Lisvane. Most leases is drafted differently and drafting errors can result in certain sections are not included. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• A provision to repair to or maintain parts of the property
• A duty to insure the building
• A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
• Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

You could encounter a problem when selling your property if you have a defective lease as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Santander, The Mortgage Works, and Clydesdale all have very detailed conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is problematic they may refuse to provide security, obliging the purchaser to pull out.

I inherited a 2 bed flat in Lisvane, conveyancing having been completed 8 years ago. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Equivalent flats in Lisvane with an extended lease are worth £179,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £60 yearly. The lease terminates on 21st October 2084

With only 58 years left to run we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £23,800 and £27,400 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of detailed due diligence. Do not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other issues that need to be taken into account and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward based on this information without first getting professional advice.