I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Colyers. Before I get started I would like to find out the unexpired term of the lease.

If the lease is registered - and most are in Colyers - 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 today plan to offer on a house that appears to tick a lot of boxes, at a great figure which is making it more attractive. I have subsequently been informed that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are particular concerns buying a house with a leasehold title in Colyers. Conveyancing advisers have not yet been appointed. Will they explain the issues?

Most houses in Colyers are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor used to dealing with such properties who can help the conveyancing process. it is apparent that you are purchasing in Colyers so you should seriously consider looking for a Colyers conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they are used to transacting on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the number of years remaining. Being a tenant you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want to the property. The lease will likely included provisions for example requiring the landlord’spermission to carry out changes to the property. You may also be required to pay a service charge towards the maintenance of the communal areas where the house is located on an estate. Your lawyer will appraise you on the various issues.

I own a leasehold house in Colyers. Conveyancing and Bank of Scotland mortgage are in place. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1992. The conveyancing practitioner in Colyers who previously acted has long since retired.Any advice?

The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to be sure that this person is indeed the new freeholder. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Colyers conveyancing firm to do this as it can be done on-line for £3. You should note that in any event, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Colyers with the purpose of expediting the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Colyers can be reduced if you appoint lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and ask them to collate the leasehold documentation needed by the buyers lawyers.
• The majority freeholders or managing agents in Colyers charge for supplying management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should find out the actual amount of the charges. The management pack sought as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. The typical amount of time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most common reason for frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Colyers.

If you have carried out any alterations to the residence would they have required Landlord’s consent? Have you, for example laid down wooden flooring? Colyers leases often stipulate that internal structural changes or installing wooden flooring require a licence from the Landlord acquiescing to such changes. Where you dont have the approvals in place you should not communicate with the landlord without checking with your conveyancer before hand.

If you have the benefit of shareholding in the Management Company, you should make sure that you are holding the original share certificate. Organising a replacement share certificate can be a time consuming process and frustrates many a Colyers conveyancing deal. If a new share certificate is needed, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (if relevant) for this sooner rather than later.

You may think that you are aware of the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be advisable verify this via your lawyers. A purchaser's conveyancer will be unlikely to recommend their client to to exchange contracts if the lease term is under 75 years. It is therefore essential at an as soon as possible that you identify 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.

We expect to complete our sale of a £450000 apartment in Colyers in just under a week. The management company has quoted £348 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and previous years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Colyers?

For most leasehold sales in Colyers 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 pre-exchange enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in Colyers
• Copies of the building insurance and schedule
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your lawyer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Colyers leasehold property is £350. For Colyers 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.

Having spent years of negotiations we simply can't agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Colyers. Does the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal have jurisdiction to calculate the appropriate figures?

if there is a missing freeholder or where there is disagreement about the premium for a lease extension, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal to assess the sum to be paid.

An example of a Lease Extension case for a Colyers residence is Various @ Colombus Square in January 2012. the Tribunal calculated the premiums to be paid for new leases for each of the flats in Mariners Walk to be £3822 and the premium to be paid for the new lease of 2 Knights Court to be £4439. This case affected 13 flats. The the unexpired term as at the valuation date was 76 years.