Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Preston Park. Before I get started I want to be sure as to the unexpired term of the lease.

If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and most are in Preston Park - 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.

My partner and I may need to let out our Preston Park 1st floor flat temporarily due to a new job. We instructed a Preston Park conveyancing firm in 2002 but they have since shut and we did not have the foresight to get any advice as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?

A small minority of properties in Preston Park do contain a provision to say that subletting is only permitted with prior consent from the landlord. The landlord is not entitled to unreasonably refuse but, in such cases, they would need to review references. Experience dictates that problems are usually caused by unsatisfactory tenants rather than owner-occupiers and for that reason you can expect the freeholder to take up the references and consider them carefully before granting consent.

I have just appointed agents to market my ground floor flat in Preston Park.Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon but I have just had a yearly maintenance charge invoice – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

It best that you pay 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 management companies will not acknowledge the buyer unless 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. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

Back In 2005, I bought a leasehold house in Preston Park. Conveyancing and HSBC Bank mortgage went though with no issue. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1997. The conveyancing practitioner in Preston Park who acted for me is not around.What should I do?

The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to be sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is in fact the new freeholder. There is no need to instruct a Preston Park conveyancing practitioner 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 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

Completion in due on the disposal of our £ 175000 apartment in Preston Park on Monday in a week. The managing agents has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and previous years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge an administration fee for a leasehold conveyance in Preston Park?

Preston Park conveyancing on leasehold flats normally necessitates fees being levied by landlords agents :

• Addressing pre-contract questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Preston Park
• Supplying insurance information
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your conveyancer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Preston Park leasehold premises is £350. For Preston Park 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 required to provide the information.

I inherited a studio flat in Preston Park, conveyancing was carried out 5 years ago. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Equivalent properties in Preston Park with over 90 years remaining are worth £226,000. The ground rent is £65 invoiced every year. The lease ceases on 21st October 2080

With just 54 years left to run we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £31,400 and £36,200 plus costs.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs without more detailed due diligence. You should not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. 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. Neither should you take any other action based on this information without first getting professional advice.