Looking forward to sign contracts shortly on a garden flat in The Hale. Conveyancing solicitors inform me that they are sending me a report on Monday. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

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

• Defining your legal entitlements in respect of common areas in the building.For instance, does the lease include a right of way over a path or hallways?

Whether the lease restricts you from letting out the flat, or having a home office for business

You must be told what counts as a Nuisance in the lease

The landlord’s rights to access the flat you be made aware that your landlord has rights of access and I know how much notice s/he must provide.

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

What options are open to you if a neighbour breach a clause of their lease?

What the implications are if you breach a clause of your lease? For details of the information to be included in your report on your leasehold property in The Hale please enquire of your lawyer in advance of your conveyancing in The Hale

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a couple of flats in The Hale which have in the region of forty five years left on the leases. Will this present a problem?

A lease is a right to use the property for a period of time. As a lease shortens the value of the lease decreases and it becomes more costly to acquire a lease extension. For this reason it is advisable to increase the term of the lease. More often than not it is difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease as mortgage lenders less inclined to grant a loan on such properties. Lease extension can be a difficult process. We recommend you get professional assistance from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this area

Last month I purchased a leasehold property in The Hale. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

In a situation 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. A critical element 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).

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in The Hale from the point of view of saving time on the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in The Hale can be avoided where you instruct lawyers as soon as you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the purchasers’ solicitors.
• The majority landlords or managing agents in The Hale charge for providing management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should discover the fee that they propose to charge. The management information can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most common reason for frustration in leasehold conveyancing in The Hale.

In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s approval? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Most leases in The Hale state that internal structural alterations or addition of wooden flooring necessitate a licence issued by the Landlord approving such alterations. If you fail to have the approvals to hand you should not communicate with the landlord without contacting your conveyancer first.

If there is a history of conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved before the property is put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be warry about purchasing a flat where there is a current dispute. You may have to bite the bullet and pay any arrears of service charge or resolve 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 particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to present the dispute as over as opposed to ongoing.

If you have the benefit of shareholding in the Management Company, you should make sure that you have the original share certificate. Obtaining a re-issued share certificate can be a lengthy process and slows down many a The Hale conveyancing deal. Where a new share certificate is required, do contact the company officers or managing agents (if applicable) for this sooner rather than later.

If all goes to plan we aim to complete our sale of a £275000 flat in The Hale in just under a week. The managing agents has quoted £408 for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and 3 years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in The Hale?

For most leasehold sales in The Hale conveyancing will involve, questions about the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :

• Completing pre-exchange enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in The Hale
• Supplying insurance information
• 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 The Hale leasehold premises is £350. For The Hale 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 supply answers.

Following years of dialogue we cannot agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in The Hale. Does the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal have jurisdiction to calculate the appropriate figures?

Most certainly. We can put you in touch with a The Hale conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension case for a The Hale residence is 20 Orchard Court Stonegrove in June 2009. The tribunal decided that a premium of £11,040 should be payable for the new lease This case affected 1 flat. The the unexpired term as at the valuation date was 71.55 years.