There are only Fifty years remaining on my lease in Barlborough. I now want to extend my lease but my freeholder is can not be found. What options are available to me?

If you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be granted an extra 90 years by the magistrate. You will be obliged to prove that you or your lawyers have used your best endeavours to locate the freeholder. For most situations a specialist would be helpful to conduct investigations and to produce a report to be used as evidence that the landlord can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a conveyancer in relation to devolving into the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Barlborough.

I today plan to offer on a house that appears to meet my requirements, at a great price which is making it more attractive. I have just found out that the title is leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are issues purchasing a leasehold house in Barlborough. Conveyancing solicitors have not yet been instructed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Barlborough are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor used to dealing with such properties who can assist with the conveyancing process. We note that you are buying in Barlborough so you should seriously consider looking for a Barlborough conveyancing solicitor and check that they have experience in dealing with leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. As a tenant you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want with the house. The lease comes with conditions such as obtaining the landlord’sconsent to conduct changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a service charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the property is part of an estate. Your solicitor will report to you on the legal implications.

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a two maisonettes in Barlborough both have approximately 50 years left on the leases. Do I need to be concerned?

There are plenty of short leases in Barlborough. The lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the premises for a prescribed time frame. As the lease shortens the marketability of the lease decreases and results in it becoming more expensive to extend the lease. For this reason it is generally wise to increase the term of the lease. More often than not it is difficult to sell a property with a short lease as mortgage companies less inclined to grant a loan on such properties. Lease enfranchisement can be a difficult process. We recommend you seek professional help from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this arena

I work for a long established estate agency in Barlborough where we have experienced a number of flat sales derailed due to short leases. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Barlborough conveyancing firms. Could you shed some light as to whether the vendor of a flat can instigate the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

As long as the seller has been the owner 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. The benefit of this is that the buyer need not have to sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.

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.

What makes a Barlborough lease unacceptable for security purposes?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Barlborough. All leases are individual and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain clauses are wrong. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• A provision to repair to or maintain elements of the property
• 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

You may have a problem when selling your property if you have a defective lease as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. HSBC Bank, Virgin Money, and TSB 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, forcing the buyer to pull out.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Barlborough - Sample of Queries before Purchasing

Generally speaking the outlay for major works are not built into the maintenance charges, although a few managing agents in Barlborough require leasehold owners to contribute towards a reserve fund created for the specific purpose of establishing a fund for major works. Is the freehold owned collectively by the tenants? Its a good idea to discover as much as you can about the managing agents as they will affect your use and enjoyment of the property. As the proprietor of a leasehold property you are often at the mercy of the managing agents from a financial perspective and when it comes to day to day matters such as the tidiness of the common parts. Enquire of other tenants what they think of their management. In conclusion, be sure you understand the dates that the maintenance fees are due to the managing agents and specifically how they are spending that money.

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Lease Extensions in Barlborough