I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Goodmayes. Before I get started I require certainty as to the unexpired term of the lease.

Assuming the lease is recorded at the land registry - and almost all are in Goodmayes - 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 am hoping to complete next month on a basement flat in Goodmayes. Conveyancing lawyers inform me that they report fully within the next couple of days. What should I be looking out for?

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

• Does the lease prevent you from letting out the property, or working from home
• You should have a good understanding of the insurance provisions
• Repair and maintenance of the flat
• I don't know whether the lease allows me to alter or improve anything in the flat - you should know whether it applies to all alterations or just structural alteration, and whether consent is required
• Responsibility for repairing the window frames
• What the implications are if you breach a clause of your lease?

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a couple of maisonettes in Goodmayes both have about 50 years remaining on the lease term. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

There are plenty of short leases in Goodmayes. The lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the property for a period of time. As the lease gets shorter the marketability of the lease decreases and it becomes more costly to acquire a lease extension. For this reason it is often a good idea to extend the lease term. Sometimes it is difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease because mortgage lenders less inclined to grant a loan on such properties. Lease extension can be a protracted process. We recommend you get professional help from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this arena

I've recently bought a leasehold flat in Goodmayes. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to completion of my purchase?

In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. However, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to be sure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.

If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Goodmayes from the perspective of expediting the sale process?

• Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Goodmayes can be bypassed where you get in touch lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers solicitors.
• The majority freeholders or managing agents in Goodmayes levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the actual amount of the charges. The management pack sought on or before finding a buyer, thus reducing delays. The average time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most usual reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Goodmayes.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s permission? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Goodmayes state that internal structural changes or addition of wooden flooring necessitate a licence from the Landlord consenting to such works. If you dont have the consents to hand you should not communicate with the landlord without checking with your conveyancer in advance.
• If there is a history of any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are resolved prior to the flat being put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be warry about purchasing a property where there is an ongoing dispute. You may have to bite the bullet and discharge any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to present the dispute as historic as opposed to unresolved.
• You may think that you are aware of the number of years left on your lease but you should verify this via your solicitors. A buyer’s lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the lease term is less than 80 years. In the circumstances it is essential at an early stage that you identify whether the lease for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

Following months of correspondence we cannot agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Goodmayes. Does the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal have jurisdiction to calculate the appropriate figures?

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

An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a Goodmayes flat is 49 Aldborough Road South in July 2012. The Tribunal decided that the premium payable for the grant of the new lease was £13,925 This case related to 1 flat. The unexpired term was 61.36 years.

Goodmayes Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - A selection of Queries Prior to Purchasing