I am attracted to a couple of maisonettes in Collier Row which have approximately fifty years remaining on the leases. Will this present a problem?

A lease is a right to use the property for a prescribed time frame. As the lease gets shorter the saleability of the lease reduces and results in it becoming more expensive to extend the lease. This is why it is often a good idea to extend the lease term. It is often difficult to sell a property with a short lease because mortgage lenders less inclined to grant a loan on properties of this type. Lease enfranchisement can be a protracted process. We recommend you get professional help from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this field

I've recently bought a leasehold property in Collier Row. Do I have any liability for service charges relating to a period prior to completion of my purchase?

Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner 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 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 offer any advice when it comes to choosing a Collier Row conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a solicitor for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Collier Row conveyancing firm) it is essential that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We recommend that you make enquires with two or three firms including non Collier Row conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions could be of use:

• If the firm is not ALEP accredited then what is the reason?

All being well we will complete the sale of our £150000 maisonette in Collier Row next week. The freeholder has quoted £384 for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and 3 years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge such fees for a leasehold conveyance in Collier Row?

Collier Row conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes often involves the buyer’s lawyer submitting enquiries for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to answer such questions the majority will be content to assist. They are entitled invoice a reasonable administration fee for responding to questions or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average costs for the paperwork that you are referring to is £350, in some transactions it is above £800. The administration charge demanded by the landlord must be accompanied by a summary of entitlements and obligations in respect of administration fees, without which the charge is not strictly payable. In reality one has no choice but to pay whatever is demanded if you want to exchange contracts with the buyer.

I have had difficulty in negotiating a lease extension in Collier Row. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal adjudicate on premiums?

Where there is a absentee freeholder or where there is dispute about what the lease extension should cost, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) to calculate the sum to be paid.

An example of a Lease Extension case for a Collier Row property is 37 Lodge Court High Street in November 2013. the decision of the LVT was that the premium to be paid for the new lease was £25,559 This case related to 1 flat. The unexpired lease term was 57.5 years.

What are the frequently found problems that you encounter in leases for Collier Row properties?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Collier Row. All leases are individual and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain clauses are missing. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain elements of the property
• A duty to insure the building
• A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
• Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

You will encounter a problem when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. HSBC Bank, Leeds Building Society, and TSB all have express conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is problematic they may refuse to provide security, obliging the buyer to withdraw.