I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Todmorden. Before diving in I would like to find out the unexpired term of the lease.

Assuming the lease is registered - and most are in Todmorden - then the leasehold title will always include the basic details 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 Todmorden. Conveyancing and Santander mortgage went though with no issue. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the freehold. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1996. The conveyancing solicitor in Todmorden who previously acted has now retired.Do I pay?

The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to be sure that this person is in fact the new freeholder. You do not need to incur the fees of a Todmorden conveyancing lawyer to do this as it can be done on-line for £3. 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.

I am employed by a reputable estate agency in Todmorden where we have witnessed a number of flat sales put at risk as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received conflicting advice from local Todmorden conveyancing solicitors. Could you shed some light as to whether the owner of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities 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. The benefit of this is that the buyer need not have to sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. 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 sale.

Alternatively, it may be possible to agree the lease extension with the freeholder 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 Todmorden with the intention of speeding up the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Todmorden can be reduced where 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 purchasers’ conveyancers.
• The majority freeholders or managing agents in Todmorden levy fees for providing management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should discover the fee that they propose to charge. The management information can be applied for as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. The average time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most common cause of frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Todmorden.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s approval? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Todmorden state that internal structural changes or addition of wooden flooring necessitate a licence issued by the Landlord acquiescing to such alterations. Where you dont have the consents to hand do not communicate with the landlord without checking with your lawyer before hand.
• A minority of Todmorden leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are 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 actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their lawyers.
• You may think that you are aware of the number of years left on your lease but it would be advisable double-check via your conveyancers. A purchaser's conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the remaining number of years is below 80 years. In the circumstances it is important at an early stage that you consider whether the lease for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale.

If all goes to plan we aim to complete the sale of our £ 225000 apartment in Todmorden on Thursday in a week. The freeholder has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and previous years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in Todmorden?

Todmorden conveyancing on leasehold flats usually results in administration charges invoiced by management companies :

• Answering conveyancing due diligence enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in Todmorden
• Supplying insurance information
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your lawyer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Todmorden leasehold property is £350. For Todmorden 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 answers.

I purchased a split level flat in Todmorden, conveyancing having been completed half a dozen years ago. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Similar flats in Todmorden with an extended lease are worth £203,000. The ground rent is £60 invoiced every year. The lease terminates on 21st October 2082

With just 56 years unexpired the likely cost is going to be between £26,600 and £30,800 plus legals.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to supply the actual costs in the absence of comprehensive due diligence. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt other issues that need to be taken into account and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward based on this information without first getting professional advice.