Expecting to complete next month on a studio apartment in Haggerston. Conveyancing solicitors inform me that they are sending me a report next week. What should I be looking out for?

Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Haggerston should include some of the following:

• Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, freeholder
• Whether your lease has a provision for a reserve fund?
• You should have a good understanding of the insurance provisions
• Repair and maintenance of the flat
• I don't know whether the lease allows me to alter or improve anything in the flat - you should know whether it applies to all alterations or just structural alteration, and whether consent is required
• Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your property and do you know what it means in practice?
• What you can do if a neighbour breach a clause of their lease?

I’m about to sell my ground floor apartment in Haggerston.Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon but I have just had a quarterly maintenance charge invoice – Do I pay up?

It best that you discharge the service charge 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 management companies will not acknowledge the buyer until 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. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

I own a leasehold flat in Haggerston. Conveyancing and Nationwide Building Society 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 1993. The conveyancing solicitor in Haggerston who acted for me is not around.What should I do?

The first thing you should do is make enquiries of HMLR to make sure that this person is in fact the new freeholder. There is no need to incur the fees of a Haggerston conveyancing lawyer to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. You should note that regardless, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I am a negotiator for a reputable estate agency in Haggerston where we have experienced a number of flat sales derailed due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given contradictory information from local Haggerston conveyancing solicitors. Could you clarify whether the vendor of a flat can start the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

As long as the seller has owned the lease 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 proposed purchaser need not have to wait 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 at the same time as completion of the sale.

An alternative approach is 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.

Following months of dialogue we cannot agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Haggerston. Can we issue an application to the Residential Property Tribunal Service?

in cases where there is a absentee landlord or if there is dispute about the premium for a lease extension, under the relevant statutes it is possible to make an application to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) to assess the sum to be paid.

An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a Haggerston property is 137 & 139 Haberdasher Street in December 2013. The Tribunal determines in accordance with section 48 and Schedule 13 of the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 that the premium for the extended lease for each Property should be £12,350.00. This case related to 2 flats. The unexpired lease term was 72.39 years.

When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Haggerston what are the most frequent lease problems?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Haggerston. Most leases are individual and drafting errors can result in certain clauses are erroneous. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain elements of the building
• A duty to insure the building
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

You may encounter difficulties when selling your property if you have a defective lease as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Santander, Virgin Money, and Nottingham Building Society 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, forcing the purchaser to pull out.

I am the registered owner of a leasehold flat in Haggerston, conveyancing having been completed 6 years ago. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Corresponding flats in Haggerston with over 90 years remaining are worth £200,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 charged once a year. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2089

With 63 years left to run we estimate the premium for your lease extension to range between £20,900 and £24,200 plus professional fees.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to provide a more accurate figure without more detailed due diligence. Do not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other concerns that need to be considered and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward based on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.