I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Wadhurst. Before I get started I want to be sure as to the remaining lease term.

If the lease is registered - and 99.9% are in Wadhurst - 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.

Back In 2009, I bought a leasehold house in Wadhurst. Conveyancing and Santander mortgage are in place. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1993. The conveyancing practitioner in Wadhurst who acted for me is not around.What should I do?

First make enquiries of the Land Registry to be sure that this person is indeed the new freeholder. There is no need to incur the fees of a Wadhurst conveyancing solicitor to do this as it can be done on-line for £3. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I work for a long established estate agent office in Wadhurst where we have witnessed a number of leasehold sales jeopardised as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given conflicting advice from local Wadhurst conveyancing firms. Could you clarify whether the vendor of a flat can instigate the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that 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. 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 has to be done prior to, or simultaneously with 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 purchaser.

What advice can you give us when it comes to choosing a Wadhurst conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

If you are instructing a conveyancer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Wadhurst conveyancing firm) it is most important that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We suggested that you speak with two or three firms including non Wadhurst conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be of use:

• How experienced is the practice with lease extension legislation?
• What are the charges for lease extension conveyancing?

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Wadhurst from the point of view of speeding up the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Wadhurst can be bypassed where you instruct lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold documentation needed by the buyers solicitors.
• Many freeholders or managing agents in Wadhurst charge for providing management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the fee that they propose to charge. The management information can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The typical amount of time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most frequent cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in Wadhurst.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s consent? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Wadhurst leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or installing wooden flooring calls for a licence issued by the Landlord consenting to such changes. Where you dont have the paperwork to hand you should not contact the landlord without checking with your conveyancer in advance.
• If you have had conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is essential that these are settled prior to the flat being put on the market. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where a dispute is unsettled. You may have to bite the bullet and 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 ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose details of the dispute to the buyers, but it is better to present the dispute as historic rather than unresolved.
• If you have the benefit of shareholding in the Management Company, you should make sure that you hold the original share document. Arranging a duplicate share certificate can be a time consuming process and slows down many a Wadhurst home move. Where a reissued share is required, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (where applicable) for this sooner rather than later.

I purchased a 2 bed flat in Wadhurst, conveyancing having been completed half a dozen years ago. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Corresponding flats in Wadhurst with over 90 years remaining are worth £239,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £55 charged once a year. The lease finishes on 21st October 2080

You have 54 years unexpired we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £31,400 and £36,200 plus legals.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to advice on a more accurate figure without more comprehensive investigations. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be other concerns that need to be considered and clearly you want to 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.