Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Preston Park. Before diving in I would like to find out the number of years remaining on the lease.

If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and almost all 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.

Back In 2002, I bought a leasehold flat in Preston Park. Conveyancing and Halifax mortgage organised. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1994. The conveyancing practitioner in Preston Park who previously acted has long since retired.What should I do?

The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to make sure that this person is indeed the new freeholder. There is no need to instruct a Preston Park conveyancing firm to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for £3. You should note that regardless, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

I've recently bought a leasehold house in Preston Park. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to my ownership?

Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. Strange as it may seem, 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).

What advice can you give us when it comes to choosing a Preston Park conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

When appointing a conveyancer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Preston Park conveyancing practice) it is imperative that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We suggested that you speak with two or three firms including non Preston Park conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions might be of use:

• If they are not ALEP accredited then what is the reason?

What are the frequently found deficiencies that you see in leases for Preston Park properties?

Leasehold conveyancing in Preston Park is not unique. Most leases are individual and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain sections are erroneous. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain elements of the building
• Insurance obligations
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

You may have difficulties when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Santander, The Mortgage Works, and Nottingham Building Society all have very detailed requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is problematic they may refuse to provide security, obliging the purchaser to pull out.

I am the registered owner of a split level flat in Preston Park, conveyancing having been completed 2010. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Equivalent properties in Preston Park with over 90 years remaining are worth £214,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £60 invoiced every year. The lease ceases on 21st October 2076

You have 55 years left to run we estimate the premium for your lease extension to range between £29,500 and £34,000 as well as costs.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure without more detailed due diligence. Do not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other concerns that need to be taken into account and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action placing reliance on this information before getting professional advice.

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Lease Extensions in Preston Park