I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Primrose Hill. 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 Primrose Hill - 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 own a leasehold flat in Primrose Hill. Conveyancing and HSBC Bank 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 Primrose Hill who previously acted has long since retired.What should I do?

The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to be sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. You do not need to instruct a Primrose Hill conveyancing firm to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. You should note that in any event, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I've recently bought a leasehold property in Primrose Hill. Do I have any liability for service charges relating to a period prior to completion of my purchase?

Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner 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. It is an essential part of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to ensure 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).

What advice can you give us when it comes to choosing a Primrose Hill conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a solicitor for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Primrose Hill conveyancing practice) it is essential that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We recommend that you make enquires with several firms including non Primrose Hill conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be useful:

• Can they put you in touch with client in Primrose Hill who can give a testimonial?
• What are the costs for lease extension work?

Notwithstanding our best efforts, we have been unsuccessful in trying to purchase the freehold in Primrose Hill. Can this matter be resolved via the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal?

Most certainly. We are happy to put you in touch with a Primrose Hill conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension case for a Primrose Hill property is Flat 2 27 Mackeson Road in December 2012. The Tribunal assessed the value of the lease extension premium at £35,435 and rounded the figure to £35,500 This case related to 1 flat. The unexpired lease term was 64.77 years.

What makes a Primrose Hill lease unacceptable for security purposes?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Primrose Hill. Most leases is drafted differently and drafting errors can result in certain provisions are missing. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain elements of the property
• A duty to insure the building
• 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 may 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. Santander, Chelsea Building Society, and Aldermore all have very detailed requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to grant the mortgage, forcing the purchaser to withdraw.

I inherited a garden flat in Primrose Hill, conveyancing formalities finalised in 1996. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Comparable flats in Primrose Hill with over 90 years remaining are worth £200,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £55 invoiced every year. The lease ends on 21st October 2090

With 64 years left to run we estimate the price of your lease extension to range between £20,000 and £23,000 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to provide a more accurate figure without more comprehensive investigations. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional issues that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action placing reliance on this information before getting professional advice.