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

If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and most are in Lea Bridge - 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.

Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my ground floor apartment in Lea Bridge.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just received a yearly maintenance charge invoice – what should I do?

The sensible thing to do is clear 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 management companies will not acknowledge the buyer unless 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 today plan to offer on a house that appears to meet my requirements, at a reasonable figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have just been informed that the title is leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are particular concerns purchasing a house with a leasehold title in Lea Bridge. Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed. Will they explain the issues?

Most houses in Lea Bridge are freehold rather than leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can assist with the conveyancing process. it is apparent that you are buying in Lea Bridge in which case you should be shopping around for a Lea Bridge conveyancing solicitor and check that they are used to transacting on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the unexpired lease term. Being a leaseholder you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want to the property. The lease will likely included provisions such as requiring the landlord’spermission to carry out alterations. It may be necessary to pay a contribution towards the maintenance of the communal areas where the property is located on an estate. Your solicitor will advise you fully on all the issues.

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Lea Bridge from the point of view of speeding up the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Lea Bridge can be bypassed if you appoint lawyers the minute you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation needed by the buyers conveyancers.
• The majority freeholders or Management Companies in Lea Bridge charge for providing management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the actual amount of the charges. The management information can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The average time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most common reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Lea Bridge.

If you have had conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are settled prior to the flat being marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be concerned about purchasing a property where there is an ongoing dispute. You may need to swallow your pride and discharge 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 ahead of 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 over as opposed to ongoing.

If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should ensure that you have the original share document. Organising a duplicate share certificate can be a lengthy formality and slows down many a Lea Bridge conveyancing deal. If a reissued share is required, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (if applicable) for this sooner rather than later.

You may think that you are aware of the number of years remaining on your lease but you should double-check via your conveyancers. A buyer’s conveyancer will not be happy to advise 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 consider whether the lease term requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

All being well we will complete our sale of a £475000 garden flat in Lea Bridge on Monday in a week. The management company has quoted £360 for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and previous years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge an administration fee for a flat conveyance in Lea Bridge?

For the majority of leasehold sales in Lea Bridge 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-contract enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in Lea Bridge
• 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 solicitor will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Lea Bridge leasehold property is £350. For Lea Bridge 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 provide answers.

I am the proprietor of a basement flat in Lea Bridge. In the absence of agreement between myself and the landlord, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal determine the amount payable for a lease extension?

Most definitely. We can put you in touch with a Lea Bridge conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement case for a Lea Bridge residence is 104 Nightingale Road in May 2009. The Tribunal's Decision is that the premium torbe paid for the enfranchisement in this case is £112,174 This case related to 10 flats. The the number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 71.25 years.