Looking forward to sign contracts shortly on a basement flat in Hampton Wick. Conveyancing solicitors inform me that they will have a report out to me next week. What should I be looking out for?

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

• Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, landlord
• The total extent of the property. This will be the apartment itself but could also incorporate a loft or basement if appropriate.
• Setting out your legal entitlements in relation to common areas in the block.For instance, does the lease contain a right of way over an accessway or staircase?
• Does the lease require carpeting throughout thus preventing wood flooring?
• Whether the lease restricts you from subletting the flat, or working from home
• You need to be told what counts as a Nuisance in the lease
• You should have a good understanding of the insurance provisions

I’m about to sell my 2 bed flat in Hampton Wick.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just had a quarterly maintenance charge demand – Do I pay up?

The sensible thing to do is pay the invoice as normal because all ground rent and service charges will be apportioned on completion, so you will be reimbursed by the buyer for the period running from after the completion date to the next payment date. Most managing agents will not acknowledge the buyer until the service charges have been paid and are up to date so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

I am attracted to a two apartments in Hampton Wick both have about 50 years unexpired on the leases. Do I need to be concerned?

There are plenty of short leases in Hampton Wick. The lease is a right to use the property for a period of time. As the lease gets shorter the saleability of the lease reduces and it becomes more costly to acquire a lease extension. For this reason it is generally wise to extend the lease term. It is often difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease as mortgage lenders less inclined to grant a loan on properties of this type. Lease enfranchisement can be a protracted process. We advise that you seek professional help from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this area

I am employed by a busy estate agent office in Hampton Wick where we have experienced a number of leasehold sales derailed due to short leases. I have been given conflicting advice from local Hampton Wick conveyancing firms. Could you clarify whether the owner of a flat can instigate the lease extension process for the buyer?

As long as the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the buyer can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done prior to, or at the same time as 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 buyer.

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

• A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Hampton Wick can be reduced where you instruct lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to collate the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers lawyers.
• If you have carried out any alterations to the premises would they have required Landlord’s approval? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Hampton Wick state that internal structural alterations or addition of wooden flooring require a licence issued by the Landlord consenting to such changes. If you dont have the approvals in place you should not communicate with the landlord without contacting your solicitor before hand.
• If you have had conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are resolved prior to the flat being marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be concerned about purchasing a flat where a dispute is ongoing. You may need to swallow your pride and 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 buyers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as historic as opposed to unsettled.
• If you are supposed to have a share in the Management Company, you should make sure that you hold the original share certificate. Obtaining a re-issued share certificate can be a time consuming process and frustrates many a Hampton Wick home move. Where a reissued share is required, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (if applicable) for this as soon as possible.
• You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but you should verify this via your solicitors. A purchaser's conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the lease term is under 75 years. It is therefore essential at an early stage 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.

Following months of dialogue we are unable to agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Hampton Wick. Does the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal have jurisdiction to calculate the appropriate figures?

in cases where there is a absentee landlord or where there is disagreement about what the lease extension should cost, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) to assess the amount due.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Hampton Wick residence is Flat D 15 Claremont Gardens in September 2013. TheTribunal determined in accordance with section48 and Schedule13 of the Leasehold Reform,Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 that the premium for the extended lease should be fourteen thousand one hundred and eighty seven pounds (£14,187.00) This case affected 1 flat.

I invested in buying a 2 bed flat in Hampton Wick, conveyancing was carried out 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 Hampton Wick with an extended lease are worth £240,000. The ground rent is £50 levied per year. The lease ends on 21st October 2090

With only 64 years unexpired we estimate the premium for your lease extension to be between £17,100 and £19,800 plus costs.

The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of comprehensive investigations. You should not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional issues that need to be considered and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action placing reliance on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.