I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that seems to tick a lot of boxes, at a great price which is making it more attractive. I have subsequently found out that it's a leasehold as opposed to freehold. I am assuming that there are particular concerns buying a leasehold house in Melbourne. Conveyancing solicitors have not yet been appointed. Will they explain the issues?

Most houses in Melbourne are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local conveyancer used to dealing with such properties who can assist with the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are purchasing in Melbourne so you should seriously consider looking for a Melbourne conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they are used to dealing with leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the unexpired lease term. As a tenant you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want to the property. The lease will likely included provisions for example requiring the freeholder’sconsent to carry out alterations. It may be necessary to pay a contribution towards the maintenance of the communal areas where the house is part of an estate. Your conveyancer will appraise you on the various issues.

I own a leasehold flat in Melbourne. Conveyancing and Santander mortgage organised. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1992. The conveyancing solicitor in Melbourne who acted for me is not around.Any advice?

The first thing you should do is contact the Land Registry to be sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is in fact the new freeholder. You do not need to instruct a Melbourne conveyancing solicitor to do this as it can be done on-line for £3. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

Last month I purchased a leasehold house in Melbourne. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

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).

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Melbourne with the intention of expediting the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Melbourne can be bypassed where you instruct lawyers the minute you market your property and request that they start to collate the leasehold information needed by the buyers conveyancers.
• A minority of Melbourne leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this is the case, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is able to meet the yearly 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 buyers or their solicitors.
• If you have had any disputes with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are settled prior to the flat being marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where there is an ongoing dispute. You may have to bite the bullet and discharge any arrears of service charge or settle 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 details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to present the dispute as historic as opposed to unresolved.
• If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should ensure that you hold the original share certificate. Organising a duplicate share certificate can be a time consuming formality and delays many a Melbourne conveyancing transaction. If a reissued share is needed, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (where relevant) for this at the earliest opportunity.
• You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but it would be wise to verify this by asking your lawyers. A purchaser's conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to where the remaining number of years is less than 80 years. It is therefore essential at an early stage that you identify whether the lease term requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale.

If all goes to plan we aim to complete our sale of a £ 450000 maisonette in Melbourne in just under a week. The freeholder has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and 3 years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Melbourne?

Melbourne conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes more often than not requires the purchaser’s lawyer sending questions for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to answer these enquiries most will be willing to assist. They may charge a reasonable administration fee for responding to enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average costs for the information that you are referring to is £350, in some cases it exceeds £800. The management information fee required by the landlord must be accompanied by a synopsis of entitlements and obligations in respect of administration charges, otherwise the charge is technically not due. In reality one has little choice but to pay whatever is demanded if you want to sell the property.

Melbourne Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Queries Prior to Purchasing

The best form of lease arrangement is a share of the freehold. In this arrangement the tenants benefit from being in charge if their destiny and even though a managing agent is often retained if it is bigger than a house conversion, the managing agent retained by the leaseholders. Plenty Melbourne leasehold apartments will be liable to pay a service bill for the upkeep of the block set by the management company. Should you purchase the apartment you will have to pay this liability, usually periodically accross the year. This could be anything from several hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for buildings with lifts and large communal areas. In all probability there will be a rentcharge for you to pay yearly, this is usually not a exorbitant sum, say around £50-£100 but you need to enquire it because occasionally it can be surprisingly expensive.