I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that appears to tick a lot of boxes, at a great figure which is making it more attractive. I have since discovered that the title is leasehold as opposed to freehold. I would have thought that there are particular concerns purchasing a house with a leasehold title in Mousehole. Conveyancing solicitors have are about to be instructed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Mousehole are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor used to dealing with such properties who can assist with the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are purchasing in Mousehole in which case you should be shopping around for a Mousehole conveyancing practitioner and check that they are used to transacting on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the unexpired lease term. Being a tenant you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions for example obtaining the freeholder’sconsent to carry out alterations. It may be necessary to pay a maintenance charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the property is located on an estate. Your conveyancer should appraise you on the various issues.

I own a leasehold house in Mousehole. Conveyancing and Birmingham Midshires mortgage organised. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the freehold. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1998. The conveyancing solicitor in Mousehole who previously acted has now retired.Do I pay?

The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to make sure that this person is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. There is no need to incur the fees of a Mousehole conveyancing firm to do this as it can be done on-line for a few pound. You should note that in any event, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I work for a long established estate agent office in Mousehole where we see a few flat sales derailed as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received conflicting advice from local Mousehole conveyancing solicitors. Could you clarify whether the owner of a flat can initiate the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

As long as the seller has owned the lease 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. This means that the buyer need not have to sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. 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 extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord 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 buyer.

Completion in due on the disposal of our £ 350000 apartment in Mousehole next Wednesday . The freeholder has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and previous years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge an administration fee for a flat conveyance in Mousehole?

Mousehole conveyancing on leasehold flats nine out of ten times necessitates fees being levied by freeholders :

• Completing conveyancing due diligence enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in Mousehole
• Copies of the building insurance and schedule
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your solicitor will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Mousehole leasehold premises is £350. For Mousehole 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 obliged to provide the information.

What are the frequently found deficiencies that you come across in leases for Mousehole properties?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Mousehole. Most leases are unique and drafting errors can sometimes mean that certain sections are missing. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain elements of the property
• A duty to insure the building
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

You will encounter difficulties when selling your property if you have a defective lease as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Accord Mortgages Ltd, The Royal Bank of Scotland, and TSB all have express conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is defective they may refuse to provide security, obliging the purchaser to withdraw.

I own a garden flat in Mousehole, conveyancing formalities finalised half a dozen years ago. 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? Corresponding properties in Mousehole with a long lease are worth £227,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 invoiced every year. The lease ceases on 21st October 2091

With 65 years left to run we estimate the premium for your lease extension to be between £14,300 and £16,400 plus professional fees.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of detailed due diligence. You should not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other concerns that need to be taken into account and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward based on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.