Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Peterborough. Before diving in I would like to find out the unexpired term of the lease.

Assuming the lease is recorded at the land registry - and almost all are in Peterborough - 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 intending to sublet my leasehold flat in Peterborough. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask him. Is permission from the freeholder required?

Notwithstanding that your previous Peterborough conveyancing solicitor is no longer available you can review your lease to check if it allows you to sublet the apartment. The accepted inference is that if the deeds are non-specific, subletting is allowed. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you need to seek permission from your landlord or other appropriate person in advance of subletting. This means you not allowed to sublet without first obtaining consent. Such consent should not be unreasonably refused ore delayed. If the lease does not allow you to sublet you will need to ask your landlord for their consent.

Back In 2004, I bought a leasehold house in Peterborough. Conveyancing and Barclays Direct mortgage went though with no issue. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1993. The conveyancing practitioner in Peterborough who previously acted has now retired.Do I pay?

First make enquiries of HMLR to make sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. You do not need to incur the fees of a Peterborough conveyancing lawyer to do this as it can be done on-line for a few pound. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

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

In a situation 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. 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).

Can you offer any advice when it comes to choosing a Peterborough conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

When appointing a property lawyer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Peterborough conveyancing practice) it is most important that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We suggested that you speak with several firms including non Peterborough conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be helpful:

• If the firm is not ALEP accredited then what is the reason?
• What are the legal fees for lease extension conveyancing?

Peterborough Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Questions you should ask Prior to Purchasing

Many Peterborough leasehold apartments will be liable to pay a service bill for the upkeep of the building invoiced on behalf of the freeholder. Where you acquire the apartment you will have to pay this amount, normally in instalments during the year. This can differ from several hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for bigger purpose-built blocks. In all likelihood there will be a ground rent for you to pay yearly, this is usually not a significant amount, say about £50-£100 but you need to enquire it because occasionally it can be surprisingly expensive.