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

If the lease is registered - and almost all are in Yaxley - 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.

I only have 62 years remaining on my flat in Yaxley. I am keen to extend my lease but my landlord is absent. What should I do?

If you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be lengthened by the Court. You will be obliged to prove that you or your lawyers have done all that could be expected to find the lessor. In some cases an enquiry agent would be useful to try and locate and to produce an expert document to be accepted by the court as proof that the landlord can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a solicitor in relation to proving the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing Yaxley.

I have just appointed agents to market my 2 bed flat in Yaxley.Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon but I have just received a quarterly maintenance charge invoice – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should clear the invoice 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 am a negotiator for a busy estate agent office in Yaxley where we see a number of leasehold sales derailed due to short leases. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Yaxley conveyancing solicitors. Could you clarify whether the seller of a flat can instigate the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

As long as 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. 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.

An alternative approach is 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.

Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on our sale of a £ 325000 flat in Yaxley in just under a week. The landlords agents has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and previous years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in Yaxley?

Yaxley conveyancing on leasehold flats usually requires the buyer’s lawyer sending questions for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to address these enquiries most will be content to assist. They may levy a reasonable administration fee for answering questions or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average fee for the information that you are referring to is £350, in some transactions it is in excess of £800. The management information fee levied by the landlord must be sent together with a synopsis of entitlements and obligations in relation to administration charges, without which the invoice is technically not due. In reality one has little choice but to pay whatever is requested of you should you wish to complete the sale of your home.

Yaxley Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Questions you should consider before buying

Is there a share of the freehold? What is the name of the managing agents?