Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only 68 years unexpired on my lease in Pontypridd. I now wish to extend my lease but my landlord is can not be found. What options are available to me?

On the basis that you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be granted an extra 90 years by the Court. However, you will be required to prove that you have made all reasonable attempts to find the landlord. For most situations an enquiry agent should be helpful to conduct investigations and prepare an expert document which can be accepted by the court as proof that the landlord is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a property lawyer both on investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Pontypridd.

Due to sign contracts shortly on a leasehold property in Pontypridd. Conveyancing solicitors inform me that they will have a report out to me next week. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

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

• You should be sent a copy of the lease

I have just started marketing my ground floor flat in Pontypridd.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just had a yearly maintenance charge demand – Do I pay up?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should clear the service charge as normal because all ground rent and service charges will be apportioned on completion, so you will be reimbursed by the buyer for the period running from after the completion date to the next payment date. Most managing agents will not acknowledge the buyer until the service charges have been paid and are up to date so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

What are your top tips when it comes to finding a Pontypridd conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

If you are instructing a solicitor for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Pontypridd conveyancing firm) it is essential that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We suggested that you talk with two or three firms including non Pontypridd conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions could be useful:

• If they are not ALEP accredited then why not?

Completion in due on our sale of a £425000 maisonette in Pontypridd next week. The managing agents has quoted £312 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and 3 years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in Pontypridd?

Pontypridd conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes normally involves the purchaser’s conveyancer sending enquiries for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to address such questions the majority will be content to assist. They are entitled levy a reasonable administration fee for answering questions or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average costs for the information that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some cases it exceeds £800. The management information fee levied by the landlord must be accompanied by a synopsis of rights and obligations in respect of administration charges, otherwise the invoice is not strictly payable. Reality however dictates that you have little option but to pay whatever is requested of you should you wish to sell the property.

I own a 1 bedroom flat in Pontypridd, conveyancing having been completed half a dozen years ago. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Equivalent properties in Pontypridd with a long lease are worth £237,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £60 per annum. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2079

With 54 years left to run the likely cost is going to be between £30,400 and £35,200 plus legals.

The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to provide a more accurate figure in the absence of comprehensive investigations. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be other concerns that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not take any other action based on this information without first getting professional advice.

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Lease Extensions in Pontypridd