I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Tetbury. Before I get started I require certainty as to the unexpired term of the lease.

If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and almost all are in Tetbury - 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 wife and I purchased a leasehold house in Tetbury. Conveyancing and Platform Home Loans Ltd mortgage are in place. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the freehold. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1995. The conveyancing solicitor in Tetbury who acted for me is not around.What should I do?

The first thing you should do is make enquiries of HMLR to make sure that this person is in fact the new freeholder. You do not need to instruct a Tetbury conveyancing firm to do this as it can be done on-line for £3. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

I've recently bought a leasehold flat in Tetbury. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

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. However, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to be sure 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 am employed by a busy estate agent office in Tetbury where we see a few leasehold sales put at risk as a result of short leases. I have received conflicting advice from local Tetbury conveyancing solicitors. Please can you confirm whether the vendor of a flat can initiate the lease extension process for the buyer?

Provided that the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the buyer need not have to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed before, or simultaneously with completion of the sale.

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 buyer.

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Tetbury from the perspective of speeding up the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Tetbury can be avoided where you instruct lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to collate the leasehold documentation needed by the purchasers’ solicitors.
• If you have carried out any alterations to the residence would they have required Landlord’s consent? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Tetbury leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or addition of wooden flooring necessitate a licence from the Landlord approving such changes. If you dont have the paperwork to hand you should not contact the landlord without contacting your solicitor before hand.
• Some Tetbury leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, it would be prudent to place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is able to meet the annual service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their solicitors.
• If you hold a share in a the Management Company, you should make sure that you have the original share document. Obtaining a re-issued share certificate can be a lengthy process and slows down many a Tetbury conveyancing transaction. Where a duplicate share certificate is required, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (if applicable) for this sooner rather than later.
• You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be advisable verify this by asking your lawyers. A purchaser's lawyer will not be happy to advise their client to to exchange contracts if the remaining number of years is below 80 years. In the circumstances it is important at an as soon as possible that you identify whether the lease requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Tetbury - Examples of Queries before buying

You will want to find out as much as possible about the managing agents as they will affect your use and enjoyment of the property. Being a leasehold owner you are often in the clutches of the managing agents from a financial perspective and when it comes to every day issues such as the tidiness of the common parts. Ask prospective neighbours what they think of them. In conclusion, be sure you understand the dates that you are obliged pay the service charge to the managing agents and precisely what you get for your money.