Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Rush Green. Before diving in I require certainty as to the unexpired term of the lease.

If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and almost all are in Rush Green - 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.

Helen (my wife) and I may need to sub-let our Rush Green ground floor flat for a while due to a career opportunity. We used a Rush Green conveyancing practice in 2003 but they have since shut and we did not think at the time get any guidance as to whether the lease permits subletting. How do we find out?

Even though your last Rush Green conveyancing solicitor is no longer around you can check your lease to check if it allows you to sublet the property. The accepted inference is that if the deeds are silent, subletting is allowed. There may be a precondition that you are obliged to seek permission from your landlord or other appropriate person prior to subletting. The net result is that you cannot sublet without first obtaining permission. Such consent must not not be unreasonably turned down. If your lease prohibits you from letting out the property you should ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold house in Rush Green. Conveyancing and Nottingham Building Society mortgage went though with no issue. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the freehold. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1996. The conveyancing practitioner in Rush Green who acted for me is not around.Do I pay?

First contact the Land Registry to make sure that this person is indeed the new freeholder. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Rush Green conveyancing solicitor to do this as it can be done on-line for a few pound. You should note that in any event, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I've recently bought a leasehold flat in Rush Green. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

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. Strange as it may seem, 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).

Having spent months of negotiations we are unable to agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Rush Green. Does the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal have jurisdiction to calculate the appropriate figures?

Most definitely. We can put you in touch with a Rush Green conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension case for a Rush Green property is 37 Lodge Court High Street in November 2013. the decision of the LVT was that the premium to be paid for the new lease was £25,559 This case related to 1 flat. The the number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 57.5 years.

Are there common deficiencies that you witness in leases for Rush Green properties?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Rush Green. Most leases is drafted differently and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain provisions are missing. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• A provision to repair to or maintain elements of the premises
• A duty to insure the building
• A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

A defective lease can cause problems when trying to sell a property primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Lloyds TSB Bank, The Mortgage Works, and Nottingham Building Society all have express conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is problematic they may refuse to grant the mortgage, forcing the purchaser to pull out.

Rush Green Leasehold Conveyancing - Sample of Questions you should consider before Purchasing