Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only 72 years left on my lease in Bagillt. I now want to get lease extension but my freeholder is missing. What are my options?

On the basis that you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be lengthened by the magistrate. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have used your best endeavours to locate the lessor. On the whole an enquiry agent would be useful to carry out a search 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 solicitor both on proving the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Bagillt.

I've found a house that appears to tick a lot of boxes, at a reasonable figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have just found out that the title is leasehold as opposed to freehold. I would have thought that there are particular concerns purchasing a leasehold house in Bagillt. Conveyancing advisers have are soon to be instructed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Bagillt are freehold rather than leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can help the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are buying in Bagillt in which case you should be looking for a Bagillt conveyancing practitioner and check that they have experience in advising on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the number of years remaining. As a tenant you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease comes with conditions such as requiring the landlord’spermission to conduct changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a maintenance charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the house is located on an estate. Your lawyer will appraise you on the various issues.

Last month I purchased a leasehold flat in Bagillt. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before my ownership?

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. It is an essential part 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 employed by a reputable estate agent office in Bagillt where we have witnessed a number of flat sales put at risk due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received contradictory information from local Bagillt conveyancing solicitors. Please can you shed some light as to whether the seller of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

Provided that the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence 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 to extend their lease. 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 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 purchaser.

What makes a Bagillt lease defective?

Leasehold conveyancing in Bagillt is not unique. All leases is drafted differently and legal mistakes in the legal wording can result in certain sections are wrong. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• A provision to repair to or maintain elements of the premises
• Insurance obligations
• A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
• Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

A defective lease can cause problems when trying to sell a property primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. National Westminster Bank, Barnsley Building Society, and Alliance & Leicester all have very detailed requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is defective they may refuse to provide security, obliging the buyer to withdraw.

I inherited a split level flat in Bagillt, conveyancing having been completed half a dozen years ago. How much will my lease extension cost? Similar flats in Bagillt with a long lease are worth £169,000. The ground rent is £55 per annum. The lease ceases on 21st October 2078

With just 54 years left to run we estimate the premium for your lease extension to be between £30,400 and £35,200 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of detailed investigations. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional concerns that need to be considered and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward placing reliance on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Bagillt