Planning to exchange soon on a studio apartment in Pentyrch. Conveyancing solicitors have said that they will have a report out to me on Monday. What should I be looking out for?

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

• Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, landlord

Last month I purchased a leasehold house in Pentyrch. 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 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).

I am employed by a long established estate agency in Pentyrch where we have experienced a number of leasehold sales derailed due to short leases. I have been given conflicting advice from local Pentyrch conveyancing solicitors. Please can you shed some light as to whether the owner of a flat can start the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

Provided that the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the buyer 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 prior to, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

Alternatively, it may be possible 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 purchaser.

What are your top tips when it comes to choosing a Pentyrch conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?

When appointing a property lawyer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Pentyrch conveyancing practice) it is essential that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We recommend that you talk with several firms including non Pentyrch conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions could be of use:

• Can they put you in touch with client in Pentyrch who can give a testimonial?

Completion in due on the sale of our £175000 apartment in Pentyrch next week. The landlords agents has quoted £420 for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and previous years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in Pentyrch?

Pentyrch conveyancing on leasehold flats normally necessitates the purchaser’s solicitor submitting questions for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is not legally bound to address such questions the majority will be willing to do so. They are entitled charge a reasonable administration fee for responding to questions or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average fee for the paperwork that you are referring to is £350, in some cases it is in excess of £800. The management information fee required by the landlord must be accompanied by a summary of rights and obligations in relation to administration fees, otherwise the charge is not strictly payable. In reality one has no option but to pay whatever is demanded if you want to exchange contracts with the buyer.

I own a leasehold flat in Pentyrch, conveyancing formalities finalised 6 years ago. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Equivalent flats in Pentyrch with a long lease are worth £210,000. The ground rent is £50 invoiced every year. The lease expires on 21st October 2081

You have 57 years unexpired we estimate the premium for your lease extension to span between £25,700 and £29,600 as well as professional fees.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure in the absence of comprehensive due diligence. Do not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt additional concerns that need to be taken into account and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward based on this information before getting professional advice.

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Lease Extensions in Pentyrch