Expecting to complete next month on a studio apartment in Lee. Conveyancing lawyers inform me that they report fully tomorrow. What should I be looking out for?

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

• Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, freeholder

The total extent of the premises. This will be the apartment itself but may include a roof space or cellar if applicable.

Will you be prohibited or prevented from having pets in the property?

Repair and maintenance of the flat

Changes to the flat (alterations and additions)

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

The landlord’s obligations to repair and maintain the building. It is important that you know who is responsible for the repair and maintenance of every part of the building For a comprehensive list of information to be included in your report on your leasehold property in Lee please enquire of your solicitor in advance of your conveyancing in Lee

Back In 2006, I bought a leasehold house in Lee. Conveyancing and TSB mortgage organised. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1997. The conveyancing solicitor in Lee who previously acted has long since retired.What should I do?

First make enquiries of the Land Registry to be sure that this person is in fact the new freeholder. You do not need to incur the fees of a Lee conveyancing practitioner to do this as it can be done on-line for £3. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Lee from the point of view of saving time on the sale process?

• Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Lee can be reduced if you appoint lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation needed by the purchasers’ conveyancers.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s approval? Have you, for example laid down wooden flooring? Lee leases often stipulate that internal structural changes or laying down wooden flooring calls for a licence issued by the Landlord consenting to such changes. Should you fail to have the paperwork in place do not communicate with the landlord without contacting your conveyancer before hand.

Some Lee leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this is the case, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. The bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is financially capable of paying 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 actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their solicitors.

If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should make sure that you are holding the original share document. Obtaining a new share certificate can be a lengthy formality and frustrates many a Lee conveyancing transaction. If a duplicate share is necessary, do contact the company officers or managing agents (where relevant) for this as soon as possible.

You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be advisable double-check by asking your lawyers. A purchaser's lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to where the remaining number of years is under 75 years. It is therefore essential at an early stage that you consider whether the lease requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

Completion in due on our sale of a £175000 apartment in Lee in nine days. The management company has quoted £396 for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and previous years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in Lee?

Lee conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes nine out of ten times involves administration charges levied by freeholders :

• Addressing conveyancing due diligence questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Lee
• 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 Lee leasehold premises is £350. For Lee 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 obliged to supply the information.

Following months of correspondence we cannot agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Lee. Can we issue an application to the Residential Property Tribunal Service?

Most definitely. We are happy to put you in touch with a Lee conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement decision for a Lee residence is 18 Handen Road in April 2013. On 26 October 2012 District Judge Zimmels sitting at the Lambeth County Court made a Vesting Order that the Applicants be granted the right to acquire the freehold upon such terms and at such price determined by the LVT. The Tribunal arrived a figure of £39,535 as a valuation for the enfranchisement. This case was in relation to 3 flats. The unexpired lease term was 69.05 years.

What makes a Lee lease defective?

Leasehold conveyancing in Lee is not unique. All leases are individual and drafting errors can result in certain sections are not included. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• A provision to repair to or maintain elements of the property
• Insurance obligations
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

You will encounter a problem when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. HSBC Bank, Barnsley Building Society, and Britannia all have very detailed conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is defective they may refuse to provide security, obliging the buyer to withdraw.