Completed the sale of my flat in Bramhall last June but our buyer keeps telephoning every few hours complaining that her conveyancer is waiting to hear from mine. What are the post completion sale legalities now that I have sold?

After completion of your house sale your lawyer should send the transfer deeds and all additional paperwork to the purchaser's solicitors. Depending on the transaction, your lawyer should also confirm that the legal charge in favour of the lender has been repaid to the purchasers lawyers. There are no post completion steps just for conveyancing in Bramhall.

Are the BSA intent on creating a online directory to list practices on the Earl Shilton BS conveyancing panel for example in Bramhall?

We have not been informed any plans on the part of the BSA to develop such a register.

Are there restrictive covenants that are commonly picked up as part of conveyancing in Bramhall?

Restrictive covenants can be picked up when reviewing land registry title as part of the legal transfer of property in Bramhall. An 1874 stipulation that was seen was ‘The houses to be erected on the estate are each to be of a uniform elevation in accordance with the drawings to be prepared or approved by the vendor’s surveyor…’

I have been on the look out for a ground for flat up to £195,000 and found one round the corner in Bramhall I like with amenity areas and transport links nearby, the downside is that it's only got 52 remaining years left on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Bramhall for this price, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake purchasing a lease with such few years left?

Should you require a home loan the shortness of the lease will likely be a potential deal breaker. Discount the price by the anticipated lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the existing proprietor has owned the property for a minimum of 2 years you can ask them to commence the lease extension formalities and pass it to you. You can add 90 years to the existing lease with a zero ground rent applied. You should speak to your conveyancing solicitor concerning this.

I am a negotiator for a busy estate agency in Bramhall where we have experienced a number of flat sales derailed due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received conflicting advice from local Bramhall conveyancing solicitors. Please can you shed some light as to whether the seller of a flat can commence 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 kick-start 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 to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

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 buyer.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Bramhall - Sample of Queries Prior to Purchasing

The best form of lease arrangement is a share of the freehold. In this situation the lessees benefit from control and although a managing agent is often employed if the building is larger than a house conversion, the managing agent acts for the leaseholders themselves. How many years remain on the lease? How is the lease structured?