Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Brentford. Before I get started I want to be sure as to the number of years remaining on the lease.

Assuming the lease is registered - and 99.9% are in Brentford - 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.

Looking forward to complete next month on a leasehold property in Brentford. Conveyancing lawyers assured me that they report fully tomorrow. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Brentford should include some of the following:

• The total extent of the premises. This will be the property itself but may include a roof space or cellar if applicable.
• Defining your rights in relation to the communal areas in the building.E.G., does the lease provide for a right of way over an accessway or hallways?
• Ground rent - how much and when you need to pay, and also know whether this is subject to change
• Whether your lease has a provision for a reserve fund?
• The landlord’s obligations to repair and maintain the building. It is important that you know who is responsible for the repair and maintenance of every part of the building
• Responsibility for repairing the window frames
• What the implications are if you breach a clause of your lease?

I work for a long established estate agency in Brentford where we see a few leasehold sales derailed as a result of short leases. I have received contradictory information from local Brentford conveyancing solicitors. Can you confirm whether the owner of a flat can instigate the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

As long as the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the buyer need not have 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 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 purchaser.

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

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Brentford can be reduced where you get in touch lawyers the minute you market your property and ask them to collate the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers conveyancers.
• A minority of Brentford leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, you should 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 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 purchasers or their solicitors.
• If there is a history of conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved prior to the flat being marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where there is a current dispute. You may need to swallow your pride and pay any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose particulars of the dispute to the buyers, but it is clearly preferable to present the dispute as over rather than ongoing.
• If you have the benefit of shareholding in the Management Company, you should make sure that you hold the original share certificate. Arranging a duplicate share certificate is often a time consuming process and delays many a Brentford conveyancing transaction. Where a new share is necessary, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (where applicable) for this at the earliest opportunity.
• You may think that you are aware of the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be advisable double-check via your conveyancers. 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 75 years. In the circumstances it is important at an as soon as possible that you identify whether the lease term requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

I am the leaseholder of a a ground floor purpose built flat in Brentford. In the absence of agreement between myself and the landlord, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal determine the sum payable for the purchase of the freehold?

You certainly can. We can put you in touch with a Brentford conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement matter before the tribunal for a Brentford property is 105 & 105A Seaford Road in July 2013. The tribunal determined that the price payable for the freehold interest in the Property was £43,985 . This sum was to be paid into Brentford County Court to enable the matter to proceed This case related to 2 flats.

What makes a Brentford lease unmortgageable?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Brentford. All leases are individual and drafting errors can result in certain sections are wrong. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain elements of the premises
• A duty to insure the building
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

A defective lease will likely cause problems when trying to sell a property as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Accord Mortgages Ltd, Barnsley Building Society, and Barclays Direct all have express requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is defective they may refuse to grant the mortgage, forcing the buyer to withdraw.

I own a 1st floor flat in Brentford, conveyancing formalities finalised half a dozen years ago. Can you shed any light on how much the price could be for a 90 year extension to my lease? Equivalent flats in Brentford with a long lease are worth £210,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £60 yearly. The lease runs out on 21st October 2080

With 54 years remaining on your lease the likely cost is going to be between £34,200 and £39,600 plus professional fees.

The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure without more detailed due diligence. Do not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional concerns that need to be taken into account and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action placing reliance on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.