Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Todmorden. Before I set the wheels in motion I require certainty as to the remaining lease term.

Assuming the lease is recorded at the land registry - and almost all are in Todmorden - 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.

Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my basement flat in Todmorden.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just received a quarterly maintenance charge demand – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should 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 managing agents 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.

I own a leasehold house in Todmorden. Conveyancing and Barclays Direct mortgage organised. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1997. The conveyancing solicitor in Todmorden who previously acted has long since retired.Do I pay?

The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to make sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. There is no need to incur the fees of a Todmorden conveyancing solicitor to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. You should note that in any event, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I've recently bought a leasehold house in Todmorden. 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 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. It is an essential part 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 busy estate agency in Todmorden where we have experienced a number of flat sales put at risk due to short leases. I have been given conflicting advice from local Todmorden conveyancing solicitors. Could you shed some light as to whether the vendor of a flat can instigate the lease extension process for the buyer?

As long as the seller has owned the lease 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 to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed 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 buyer.

I purchased a leasehold flat in Todmorden, conveyancing having been completed 1995. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Comparable flats in Todmorden with over 90 years remaining are worth £251,000. The ground rent is £65 per annum. The lease terminates on 21st October 2088

With 62 years left to run we estimate the premium for your lease extension to range between £17,100 and £19,800 plus professional fees.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to advice on a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed investigations. Do not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be additional concerns that need to be considered and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward placing reliance on this information without first getting professional advice.