I've found a house that seems to tick a lot of boxes, at a reasonable figure which is making it more attractive. I have subsequently discovered that it's a leasehold as opposed to freehold. I am assuming that there are issues purchasing a leasehold house in North London. Conveyancing advisers have are soon to be instructed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in North London are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local conveyancer used to dealing with such properties who can assist with the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are purchasing in North London in which case you should be looking for a North London conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they are used to advising on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the unexpired lease term. Being a leaseholder you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want to the property. The lease will likely included provisions for example requiring the freeholder’sconsent to conduct changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a contribution towards the maintenance of the communal areas where the property is located on an estate. Your solicitor should advise you fully on all the issues.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold flat in North London. Conveyancing and Alliance & Leicester mortgage organised. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1996. The conveyancing solicitor in North London who acted for me is not around.What should I do?

First contact HMLR to make sure that this person is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. There is no need to instruct a North London conveyancing lawyer to do this as it can be done on-line for a few pound. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

I've recently bought a leasehold flat in North London. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

In a situation 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. A critical element 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).

I work for a reputable estate agency in North London where we have witnessed a few leasehold sales jeopardised as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received conflicting advice from local North London conveyancing firms. Can you clarify whether the vendor of a flat can instigate the lease extension process for the buyer?

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. This means that the buyer can avoid having to wait 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.

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.

All being well we will complete our sale of a £ 400000 garden flat in North London in nine days. The freeholder has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and previous years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge such fees for a leasehold conveyance in North London?

For most leasehold sales in North London conveyancing will involve, queries regarding the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :

• Addressing pre-exchange questions
• Where consent is required before sale in North London
• Supplying insurance information
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your conveyancer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for North London leasehold property is £350. For North London conveyancing transactions it is customary for the seller to pay for these costs. The landlord or their agents are under no legal obligation to answer such questions most will be willing to do so - albeit often at exorbitant prices where the fees bear little relation to the work involved. Unfortunately there is no law that requires fixed charges for administrative tasks. Neither is there any legal time frame by which they are obliged to provide the information.

After months of dialogue we are unable to agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in North London. Does the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal have jurisdiction to calculate the appropriate figures?

You certainly can. We are happy to put you in touch with a North London conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement case for a North London premises is 20 Avonwick Road in July 2013. The Tribunal was dealing with an application under Section 26 of the Leasehold Reform Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 for a determination of the freehold value of the property. It was concluded that the price to be paid was Fifteen Thousand Nine Hundred and Seventy (£15,970) divided as to £8,200 for Flat 20 and £7,770 for Flat 20A This case related to 1 flat. The the unexpired residue of the current lease was 73.26 years.

I inherited a 1 bedroom flat in North London, conveyancing having been completed 6 years ago. How much will my lease extension cost? Similar properties in North London with a long lease are worth £266,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £60 invoiced every year. The lease terminates on 21st October 2086

With just 60 years unexpired we estimate the price of your lease extension to be between £20,900 and £24,200 as well as professional fees.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to advice on a more accurate figure without more detailed due diligence. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt additional concerns that need to be taken into account and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not take any other action based on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.