Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Tredegar. Before I set the wheels in motion I want to be sure as to the unexpired term of the lease.

Assuming the lease is recorded at the land registry - and most are in Tredegar - 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.

Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only Fifty years left on my lease in Tredegar. I need to extend my lease but my landlord is can not be found. What are my options?

If you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be granted an extra 90 years by the magistrate. However, you will be required to prove that you have used your best endeavours to track down the landlord. On the whole a specialist should be helpful to conduct investigations and prepare an expert document to be accepted by the court as evidence that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a property lawyer both on investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court covering Tredegar.

Expecting to sign contracts shortly on a studio apartment in Tredegar. Conveyancing solicitors assured me that they will have a report out to me next week. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Tredegar should include some of the following:

• Defining your legal entitlements in respect of common areas in the block.By way of example, does the lease grant a right of way over a path or staircase?
• Will you be prohibited or prevented from having pets in the property?
• You must be told what constitutes a Nuisance in the lease
• You should have a good understanding of the insurance provisions
• Repair and maintenance of the flat
• Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your property and do you know what it means in practice?
• What the implications are if you breach a clause of your lease?

Last month I purchased a leasehold house in Tredegar. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

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. Strange as it may seem, 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 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).

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Tredegar with the aim of saving time on the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Tredegar can be reduced if you instruct lawyers as soon as you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the purchasers’ solicitors.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s permission? Have you, for example laid down wooden flooring? Most leases in Tredegar state that internal structural changes or laying down wooden flooring calls for a licence issued by the Landlord acquiescing to such alterations. If you fail to have the paperwork to hand do not contact the landlord without contacting your conveyancer in advance.
• A minority of Tredegar leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is financially capable of paying the yearly 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 purchasers or their solicitors.
• If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should make sure that you are holding the original share certificate. Obtaining a new share certificate can be a time consuming formality and slows down many a Tredegar home move. Where a new share is necessary, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (if relevant) for this at the earliest opportunity.
• You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but it would be advisable double-check via your conveyancers. A buyer’s lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to to exchange contracts if the remaining number of years is less than 75 years. In the circumstances it is important at an early stage that you identify whether the lease term requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale.

I inherited a basement flat in Tredegar, conveyancing having been completed half a dozen years ago. Can you let me have an estimate of the premium that my landlord can legally expect in return for granting a renewal of my lease? Comparable flats in Tredegar with a long lease are worth £235,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £55 per annum. The lease expires on 21st October 2078

With 52 years unexpired we estimate the price of your lease extension to be between £32,300 and £37,400 plus costs.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to advice on the actual costs without more detailed investigations. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt additional issues that need to be considered and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward placing reliance on this information without first getting professional advice.