I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Lisvane. Before I get started I require certainty as to the number of years remaining on the lease.

Assuming the lease is recorded at the land registry - and most are in Lisvane - then the leasehold title will always include the basic details 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 have recently realised that I have 68 years left on my flat in Lisvane. I now wish to extend my lease but my landlord is missing. What should I do?

On the basis that you meet the appropriate requirements, 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 demonstrate that you have used your best endeavours to find the landlord. For most situations an enquiry agent may be helpful to try and locate and to produce a report which can be accepted by the court as proof that the freeholder can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a solicitor both on devolving into the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Lisvane.

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a couple of maisonettes in Lisvane both have in the region of forty five years left on the leases. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

There are plenty of short leases in Lisvane. The lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the premises for a prescribed time frame. As a lease shortens the value of the lease decreases and results in it becoming more costly to extend the lease. For this reason it is generally wise to extend the lease term. More often than not it is difficult to sell a property with a short lease as mortgage lenders may be reluctant to lend money on properties of this type. Lease extension can be a protracted process. We advise that you seek professional assistance from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this area

I am employed by a busy estate agent office in Lisvane where we have experienced a number of leasehold sales jeopardised due to short leases. I have been given contradictory information from local Lisvane conveyancing solicitors. Could you confirm whether the seller of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the buyer need not have to sit tight for 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 simultaneously with completion of the sale.

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 buyer.

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Lisvane from the point of view of expediting the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Lisvane can be avoided where you instruct lawyers the minute you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers conveyancers.
• Many landlords or managing agents in Lisvane levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should find out the actual amount of the charges. The management information can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most frequent cause of frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Lisvane.
• A minority of Lisvane leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, it would be prudent to notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand financial (bank) and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is able to meet 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 purchasers or their solicitors.
• If you hold a share in a the freehold, you should make sure that you are holding the original share document. Obtaining a new share certificate is often a time consuming formality and delays many a Lisvane home move. If a reissued share is needed, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (if relevant) for this as soon as possible.
• You may think that you are aware of the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be wise to double-check via your solicitors. A purchaser's lawyer will not be happy to advise their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the lease term is under 80 years. It is therefore essential at an as soon as possible that you identify whether the lease requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale.

I am the registered owner of a leasehold flat in Lisvane, conveyancing was carried out in 2011. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Comparable flats in Lisvane with a long lease are worth £228,000. The ground rent is £65 invoiced annually. The lease expires on 21st October 2080

You have 54 years left to run we estimate the price of your lease extension to range between £32,300 and £37,400 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The figure above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs without more comprehensive due diligence. Do not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be other issues that need to be taken into account and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action based on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.