Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only 68 years left on my lease in Battle. I need to extend my lease but my landlord is absent. What should I do?

On the basis that you meet the appropriate requirements, 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 extended by the Court. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you have done all that could be expected to track down the landlord. For most situations a specialist would be useful to try and locate and prepare a report to be used as evidence that the landlord can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a solicitor both on proving the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Battle.

Planning to complete next month on a leasehold property in Battle. Conveyancing lawyers assured me that they will have a report out to me within the next couple of days. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Battle should include some of the following:

• The unexpired lease term You should be advised as what happens when the lease expires, and aware of the importance of the 80 year mark
• Does the lease prevent you from subletting the property, or working from home
• You must be told what constitutes a Nuisance in the lease
• Whether your lease has a provision for a reserve fund?
• Repair and maintenance of the flat
• The landlord’s rights to access the flat you be made aware that your landlord has rights of access and I know how much notice s/he must provide.
• What options are open to you if a neighbour is in violation of a provision in their lease?

I've found a house that appears to be perfect, at a great price which is making it all the more appealing. I have just found out that the title is leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are issues purchasing a leasehold house in Battle. Conveyancing solicitors have are about to be instructed. Will they explain the issues?

Most houses in Battle are freehold rather than leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer used to dealing with such properties who can help the conveyancing process. We note that you are purchasing in Battle so you should seriously consider looking for a Battle conveyancing solicitor and check that they are used to advising on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the number of years remaining. Being a leaseholder you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions such as requiring the freeholder’sconsent to carry out changes to the property. You may also be required to pay a maintenance charge towards the upkeep of the estate where the house is located on an estate. Your conveyancer will appraise you on the various issues.

I am employed by a long established estate agency in Battle where we have experienced a few flat sales put at risk due to short leases. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Battle conveyancing firms. Can you confirm whether the seller of a flat can instigate the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

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 need not have to wait 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done prior to, 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.

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Battle from the point of view of expediting the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Battle can be bypassed if you instruct lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the purchasers’ representatives.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s approval? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Most leases in Battle state that internal structural changes or addition of wooden flooring require a licence issued by the Landlord acquiescing to such works. Should you dont have the consents to hand you should not contact the landlord without contacting your conveyancer in advance.
• If you have had any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are settled prior to the flat being put on the market. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where there is a current dispute. You may need to swallow your pride and discharge any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose particulars of the dispute to the buyers, but it is better to reveal the dispute as historic as opposed to ongoing.
• If you hold a share in a the freehold, you should make sure that you are holding the original share certificate. Organising a replacement share certificate is often a time consuming formality and slows down many a Battle conveyancing deal. If a new share certificate is needed, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (if applicable) for this sooner rather than later.
• You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be advisable verify this via your lawyers. A purchaser's lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the lease term is under 75 years. It is therefore important at an as soon as possible that you identify whether the lease requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

I own a ground floor flat in Battle, conveyancing formalities finalised 9 years ago. How much will my lease extension cost? Similar properties in Battle with an extended lease are worth £230,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £55 invoiced every year. The lease runs out on 21st October 2105

With only 79 years remaining on your lease we estimate the price of your lease extension to be between £10,500 and £12,000 plus legals.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure without more detailed due diligence. Do not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt additional concerns that need to be taken into account and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward based on this information without first getting professional advice.