Due to sign contracts shortly on a ground floor flat in Coney Hall. Conveyancing solicitors inform me that they are sending me a report within the next couple of days. What should I be looking out for?

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

• The length of the lease term You should be advised as what happens when the lease expires, and aware of the importance of not letting the lease term falling below eighty years
• The physical extent of the property. This will be the flat itself but could also incorporate a loft or cellar if appropriate.
• Defining your rights in respect of common areas in the block.E.G., does the lease permit a right of way over an accessway or staircase?
• Will you be prohibited or prevented from having pets in the property?
• Changes to the flat (alterations and additions)
• 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?

I own a leasehold flat in Coney Hall. Conveyancing and Aldermore mortgage organised. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1992. The conveyancing solicitor in Coney Hall who acted for me is not around.Any advice?

The first thing you should do is make enquiries of HMLR to make sure that this person is indeed the new freeholder. There is no need to incur the fees of a Coney Hall conveyancing lawyer 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 freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

I am employed by a busy estate agency in Coney Hall where we have experienced a few leasehold sales put at risk due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given contradictory information from local Coney Hall conveyancing firms. 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. This means that the proposed purchaser need not have to wait 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.

Alternatively, it may be possible to agree the lease extension with the freeholder 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.

What are your top tips when it comes to choosing a Coney Hall conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a conveyancer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Coney Hall conveyancing firm) it is essential that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We recommend that you speak with two or three firms including non Coney Hall conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be of use:

• If the firm is not ALEP accredited then why not?
• What are the charges for lease extension conveyancing?

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Coney Hall with the intention of speeding up the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Coney Hall can be bypassed where you appoint lawyers the minute your agents start marketing the property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the purchasers’ representatives.
• If you have carried out any alterations to the residence would they have required Landlord’s approval? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Most leases in Coney Hall state that internal structural alterations or addition of wooden flooring require a licence from the Landlord approving such works. Where you dont have the paperwork in place do not communicate with the landlord without checking with your conveyancer before hand.
• A minority of Coney Hall 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 obtain bank and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are able to meet 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 service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their solicitors.
• If you have had any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are settled prior to the flat being marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where there is an ongoing dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to pay any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to reveal the dispute as historic as opposed to unsettled.
• You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but it would be wise to double-check by asking your solicitors. A purchaser's conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to to exchange contracts if the lease term is less than 75 years. It is therefore important 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 premises on the market for sale.

Having spent months of correspondence we are unable to agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Coney Hall. Can we issue an application to the Residential Property Tribunal Service?

if there is a missing landlord or where there is disagreement about what the lease extension should cost, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 it is possible to make an application to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal to decide the amount due.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Coney Hall flat is 1 Southlands Court Southlands Road in September 2013. The Leasehold Valuation Tribunal determined that the premium to be paid by the tenant on the grant of a new lease, in accordance with section 56 and Schedule 13 of the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 was £30,541 This case was in relation to 1 flat. The unexpired term was 50.57 years.

Coney Hall Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Questions you should consider Prior to buying

In the main the cost for major works are not incorporated into the service charges, although there some managing agents in Coney Hall obliged tenants to contribute towards a reserve fund and this is used to offset against major repairs or maintenance. It would be sensible to discover as much as you can regarding the company managing the block as they can either make your life much easier or much more difficult. As the owner of a leasehold property you will be in the clutches of the managing agents both financially and when it comes to every day matters such as the cleanliness of the common parts. Don't be shy to ask other people what they think of them. Finally, find out the dates that you are obliged pay the maintenance charge to the appropriate party and specifically what it includes.