I only have 72 years left on my lease in Aston on Trent. I need to get lease extension but my freeholder is absent. What options are available to me?

If you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be lengthened by the magistrate. You will be obliged to prove that you or your lawyers have done all that could be expected to find the lessor. For most situations an enquiry agent would be useful to try and locate and to produce an expert document which can be accepted by the court as evidence that the landlord can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a property lawyer in relation to investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing Aston on Trent.

Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my 2 bed flat in Aston on Trent.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just had a quarterly maintenance charge demand – Do I pay up?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should pay 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 unless 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. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

Back In 2000, I bought a leasehold flat in Aston on Trent. Conveyancing and Virgin Money mortgage organised. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1996. The conveyancing solicitor in Aston on Trent who acted for me is not around.Do I pay?

First contact HMLR to make sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. You do not need to incur the fees of a Aston on Trent conveyancing practitioner to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. Rest assured that regardless, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I've recently bought a leasehold flat in Aston on Trent. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to my ownership?

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. Strange as it may seem, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. It is an essential part of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to ensure 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).

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Aston on Trent with the purpose of speeding up the sale process?

• Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Aston on Trent can be avoided where you appoint lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and ask them to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the purchasers’ conveyancers.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s approval? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Aston on Trent leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or laying down wooden flooring require a licence issued by the Landlord acquiescing to such changes. Where you dont have the paperwork in place do not communicate with the landlord without checking with your solicitor first.
• If there is a history of any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved before the property is marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where there is an ongoing dispute. You may have to bite the bullet and discharge any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to present the dispute as historic rather than unresolved.
• If you hold a share in a the freehold, you should make sure that you hold the original share certificate. Obtaining a re-issued share certificate can be a lengthy process and delays many a Aston on Trent home move. If a duplicate share certificate is needed, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (where applicable) for this at the earliest opportunity.
• You may think that you are aware of the number of years remaining on your lease but you should double-check by asking your solicitors. A purchaser's conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to where the remaining number of years is under 80 years. In the circumstances it is essential at an early stage that you identify whether the lease for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale.

Aston on Trent Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Questions you should consider before Purchasing

Are any of leasehold owners in arrears of their service charge liability? How long is the Lease?