Due to complete next month on a garden flat in The Hale. Conveyancing solicitors have said that they will have a report out to me within the next couple of days. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

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

• The unexpired lease term You should be advised as what happens when the lease expires, and aware of the importance of not letting the lease term falling below eighty years

I today plan to offer on a house that seems to be perfect, at a great price which is making it all the more appealing. I have just discovered that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are particular concerns purchasing a house with a leasehold title in The Hale. Conveyancing solicitors have not yet been appointed. Will my lawyers set out the risks of buying a leasehold house in The Hale ?

Most houses in The Hale are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local conveyancer used to dealing with such properties who can help the conveyancing process. it is apparent that you are buying in The Hale in which case you should be looking for a The Hale conveyancing practitioner and be sure that they have experience in dealing with leasehold houses. First you will need to check the unexpired lease term. As a tenant you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want to the property. The lease will likely included provisions for example requiring the freeholder’spermission to carry out changes to the property. You may also be required to pay a maintenance charge towards the maintenance of the communal areas where the house is part of an estate. Your solicitor should advise you fully on all the issues.

I own a leasehold house in The Hale. Conveyancing and Norwich and Peterborough Building Society mortgage went though with no issue. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1998. The conveyancing solicitor in The Hale who previously acted has long since retired.What should I do?

First make enquiries of HMLR to make sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is indeed the new freeholder. There is no need to instruct a The Hale conveyancing practitioner to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for a few pound. You should note that in any event, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I've recently bought a leasehold flat in The Hale. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before my ownership?

In a situation 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. 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 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).

What advice can you give us when it comes to finding a The Hale conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a conveyancer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a The Hale conveyancing practice) it is imperative that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We recommend that you speak with two or three firms including non The Hale conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be of use:

• If they are not ALEP accredited then what is the reason?

Following years of dialogue we simply can't 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?

if there is a absentee landlord or where there is disagreement about the premium for a lease extension, under the relevant statutes you can apply to the LVT to determine the price payable.

An example of a Lease Extension case for a The Hale property 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 related to 1 flat. The unexpired term was 71.55 years.