Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in West Wickham. Before diving in I require certainty as to the number of years remaining on the lease.

Assuming the lease is recorded at the land registry - and almost all are in West Wickham - then the leasehold title will always include the basic details 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.

Looking forward to complete next month on a garden flat in West Wickham. Conveyancing solicitors assured me that they will have a report out to me on Monday. What should I be looking out for?

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

• Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, freeholder
• Setting out your legal entitlements in relation to the communal areas in the building.E.G., does the lease include a right of way over a path or hallways?
• An explanation as to the provision in the lease to pay service charges - with regard to both the building, and the more general rights a leaseholder has
• You should have a good understanding of the insurance provisions
• Repair and maintenance of the flat
• What you can do if a neighbour breach a clause of their lease?
• What the implications are if you breach a clause of your lease?

I am looking at a two maisonettes in West Wickham both have in the region of 50 years left on the lease term. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

There are plenty of short leases in West Wickham. The lease is a right to use the premises for a prescribed time frame. As the lease shortens the marketability of the lease reduces and it becomes more expensive to extend the lease. For this reason it is generally wise to extend the lease term. More often than not it is difficult to sell a property with a short lease because mortgage companies may be reluctant to lend money on such properties. Lease enfranchisement can be a difficult process. We recommend you seek professional assistance from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this field

Last month I purchased a leasehold flat in West Wickham. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to 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. 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).

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in West Wickham with the intention of expediting the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in West Wickham can be reduced if you appoint lawyers as soon as you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the purchasers’ lawyers.
• Many landlords or Management Companies in West Wickham charge for supplying management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should discover the actual amount of the charges. The management information sought as soon as you have a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The typical amount of time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most common cause of frustration in leasehold conveyancing in West Wickham.
• A minority of West Wickham leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are financially capable of paying the annual 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 service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their lawyers.
• If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should ensure that you are holding the original share document. Arranging a duplicate share certificate is often a time consuming process and slows down many a West Wickham home move. Where a new share is necessary, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (if relevant) for this sooner rather than later.
• You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but it would be wise to verify this via your solicitors. A buyer’s conveyancer will be unlikely to recommend their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the lease term is under 75 years. It is therefore important at an as soon as possible that you identify whether the lease requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale.

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

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

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement matter before the tribunal for a West Wickham premises is 26 Manor Road in July 2010. the Tribunal decided that price to be paid for the freehold was £12,420 This case was in relation to 2 flats. The unexpired lease term was 76.75 and 88.83.

I own a leasehold flat in West Wickham, conveyancing formalities finalised half a dozen years ago. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Equivalent properties in West Wickham with a long lease are worth £178,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 levied per year. The lease finishes on 21st October 2105

You have 79 years unexpired we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £9,500 and £11,000 plus legals.

The figure above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs without more detailed due diligence. Do not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt other issues that need to be considered and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not take any other action placing reliance on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.