Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Skelmersdale. 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 99.9% are in Skelmersdale - 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 own a leasehold flat in Skelmersdale. Conveyancing and Britannia mortgage organised. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1998. The conveyancing solicitor in Skelmersdale who previously acted has now retired.What should I do?

The first thing you should do is contact the Land Registry to make sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is in fact the new freeholder. You do not need to incur the fees of a Skelmersdale 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 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

Last month I purchased a leasehold flat in Skelmersdale. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before my ownership?

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).

I work for a reputable estate agency in Skelmersdale where we see a few flat sales derailed due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given contradictory information from local Skelmersdale conveyancing firms. Could you shed some light as to whether the seller of a flat can initiate the lease extension process for the buyer?

As long as 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. This means that the proposed purchaser can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, 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.

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Skelmersdale from the point of view of expediting the sale process?

• Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Skelmersdale can be reduced if you appoint lawyers as soon as you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers solicitors.
• If you have carried out any alterations to the residence would they have required Landlord’s permission? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Skelmersdale leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or laying down wooden flooring calls for a licence issued by the Landlord acquiescing to such changes. Where you dont have the approvals to hand you should not communicate with the landlord without contacting your lawyer before hand.
• If there is a history of conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are resolved before the property is marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where there is a current dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to pay any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as over as opposed to unsettled.
• If you have the benefit of shareholding in the Management Company, you should make sure that you hold the original share certificate. Obtaining a new share certificate can be a time consuming process and frustrates many a Skelmersdale conveyancing transaction. If a reissued share certificate is needed, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (where applicable) for this as soon as possible.
• You may think that you are aware of the number of years left on your lease but it would be wise to double-check by asking your lawyers. A buyer’s conveyancer will be unlikely to recommend their client to to exchange contracts if the lease term is less than 75 years. In the circumstances it is essential at an as soon as possible that you identify whether the lease term requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

I inherited a garden flat in Skelmersdale, conveyancing was carried out 4 years ago. Can you shed any light on how much the price could be for a 90 year extension to my lease? Comparable properties in Skelmersdale with a long lease are worth £262,000. The ground rent is £60 invoiced every year. The lease ends on 21st October 2104

With 78 years remaining on your lease the likely cost is going to range between £9,500 and £11,000 as well as professional fees.

The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of detailed due diligence. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt additional concerns that need to be taken into account and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action placing reliance on this information without first getting professional advice.