I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Maidenhead. Before I get started I require certainty as to the remaining lease term.

Assuming the lease is recorded at the land registry - and 99.9% are in Maidenhead - 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 am hoping to sign contracts shortly on a studio apartment in Maidenhead. Conveyancing lawyers have said that they are sending me a report next week. What should I be looking out for?

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

• Does the lease require carpeting throughout thus preventing wood flooring?

I own a leasehold flat in Maidenhead. Conveyancing and Nottingham Building Society mortgage went though with no issue. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1995. The conveyancing practitioner in Maidenhead who acted for me is not around.Do I pay?

The first thing you should do is contact the Land Registry to be sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is in fact the new freeholder. You do not need to instruct a Maidenhead conveyancing lawyer to do this as it can be done on-line for £3. 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 am employed by a reputable estate agency in Maidenhead where we have experienced a number of flat sales jeopardised as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given contradictory information from local Maidenhead conveyancing firms. Could you clarify whether the vendor of a flat can commence the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser can avoid having to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed before, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

An alternative approach is to agree the lease extension with the freeholder either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the purchaser.

When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Maidenhead what are the most common lease defects?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Maidenhead. All leases is drafted differently and legal mistakes in the legal wording can result in certain clauses are erroneous. 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
• 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

A defective lease can cause problems when trying to sell a property as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Yorkshire Building Society, Norwich and Peterborough Building Society, and Clydesdale 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 buyer to pull out.

I purchased a 1st floor flat in Maidenhead, conveyancing was carried out in 2003. Can you let me have an estimate of the premium that my landlord can legally expect in return for granting a renewal of my lease? Equivalent flats in Maidenhead with over 90 years remaining are worth £198,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £45 invoiced annually. The lease ceases on 21st October 2092

With 69 years left to run we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £10,500 and £12,000 plus costs.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to advice on the actual costs in the absence of detailed due diligence. You should not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional concerns that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action based on this information without first getting professional advice.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Maidenhead