I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Swinton. Before diving in I want to be sure as to the remaining lease term.

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

My wife and I purchased a leasehold house in Swinton. Conveyancing and Alliance & Leicester mortgage went though with no issue. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1994. The conveyancing solicitor in Swinton who acted for me is not around.What should I do?

First contact HMLR to make sure that this person is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Swinton conveyancing solicitor to do this as it can be done on-line for a few pound. You should note that regardless, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

Last month I purchased a leasehold property in Swinton. 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. 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 am a negotiator for a long established estate agent office in Swinton where we have witnessed a few flat sales jeopardised due to short leases. I have received inconsistent advice from local Swinton conveyancing solicitors. Please can you shed some light as to whether the vendor of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

As long as the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the buyer can avoid having 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 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.

Completion in due on our sale of a £ 375000 apartment in Swinton next week. The management company has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and 3 years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge an administration fee for a flat conveyance in Swinton?

Swinton conveyancing on leasehold apartments usually requires the purchaser’s solicitor sending enquiries for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is not legally bound to address these enquiries the majority will be willing to assist. They may levy a reasonable charge for answering questions or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average fee for the paperwork that you are referring to is £350, in some transactions it is above £800. The administration charge invoiced by the landlord must be accompanied by a synopsis of entitlements and obligations in relation to administration charges, without which the charge is technically not due. In reality one has little choice but to pay whatever is requested of you should you wish to exchange contracts with the buyer.

I am the registered owner of a 2 bed flat in Swinton, conveyancing formalities finalised 2000. Can you shed any light on how much the price could be for a 90 year extension to my lease? Corresponding flats in Swinton with a long lease are worth £236,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £55 yearly. The lease terminates on 21st October 2094

With only 68 years unexpired the likely cost is going to be between £9,500 and £11,000 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to supply the actual costs without more comprehensive investigations. Do not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt additional issues that need to be taken into account and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward placing reliance on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.