Me and my brother purchased a terraced Georgian house in Great Yarmouth. Conveyancing lawyer represented me and The Royal Bank of Scotland. I did a free Land Registry search last week and there are two entries: the first freehold, the second leasehold with the exact same address. I'd like to know for sure, how can I find out??

You should assess the Freehold register you have again and check the Charges Register for mention of a lease. The best way to be sure that you are also the registered proprietor of the leasehold and freehold title as well is to check (£3). It is not completely unheard of in Great Yarmouth and other locations in the country and poses no real issues for owners other than when they mortgage they have to account for both freehold and leasehold interests when dealing with lenders. You can also check the situation with your conveyancing practitioner who conducted the conveyancing.

I have been on the look out for a ground for flat up to £305k and found one near me in Great Yarmouth I like with amenity areas and transport links in the vicinity, however it's only got 52 years unexpired on the lease. There is not much else in Great Yarmouth in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error acquiring a short lease?

Should you need a mortgage the shortness of the lease may be problematic. Reduce the price by the amount the lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the current owner has owned the property for a minimum of twenty four months you could request that they commence the lease extension formalities and pass it to you. You can add 90 years to the existing lease and have £0 ground rent by law. You should consult your conveyancing solicitor concerning this.

Am I right to be wary by estate agents that I am dealing with are recommending a factory type conveyancing firm rather than a local Great Yarmouth conveyancing practice?

As with lots of service providers, often suggestions from family and friends can be worth their weight in gold. But there are many parties with a keen interest in a conveyancing transaction; estate agents, mortgage brokers and mortgage companies might all suggest solicitors to select. On occasion the solicitors might be known to one of the organisations as one of the best in their field, but sometimes there might be a commercial relationship behind the endorsement. You are at liberty to choose your preferred lawyer. Don't forget that most mortgage providers have an approved list of solicitors you must use for the mortgage related work in your conveyancing.

I am a negotiator for a long established estate agent office in Great Yarmouth where we have experienced a number of flat sales jeopardised as a result of short leases. I have been given conflicting advice from local Great Yarmouth conveyancing firms. Could you confirm whether the vendor of a flat can start 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 start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser 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 before, or at the same time as completion of the sale.

Alternatively, it may be possible 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 purchaser.

I acquired a 2 bed flat in Great Yarmouth, conveyancing having been completed March 2005. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Corresponding properties in Great Yarmouth with an extended lease are worth £171,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 levied per year. The lease ceases on 21st October 2104

With 79 years left to run the likely cost is going to be between £8,600 and £9,800 plus costs.

The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of comprehensive due diligence. You should 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 you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward based on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.

When it comes to my conveyancing in Great Yarmouth should I be charged VAT on the following: (1) Land reg fee on purchase (2) Pre - completion search fee (3) SDLT E submission on purchase (4) Bank TT fee

(1) Land reg fee on purchase - No (2) Pre - completion search fees -No, (such conveyancing searches are HMLR ones and means £4 and possibly £2 bankruptcy per name on your mortgage) (3) SDLT E submission on your purchase - There is no VAT on Stamp Duty. However if the firm is charging a stamp duty e-submission fee as part of their services - some Great Yarmouth conveyancers do - that will incur VAT(4) Bank transfer fee - Yes it is for the conveyancer's time in submitting the funds this way.