I only have Fifty years remaining on my flat in Biggleswade. I now wish to extend my lease but my landlord 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 an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be extended by the Court. You will be obliged to prove that you have made all reasonable attempts to locate the freeholder. On the whole an enquiry agent would be helpful to conduct investigations and prepare a report which can be accepted by the court as evidence that the landlord can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer in relation to devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Biggleswade.

I have just appointed agents to market my basement apartment in Biggleswade.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just received a half-yearly maintenance charge demand – Do I pay up?

It best that you discharge 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 until 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.

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a two apartments in Biggleswade which have approximately 50 years remaining on the lease term. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

A lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the property for a period of time. As a lease gets shorter the saleability of the lease deteriorate and results in it becoming more costly to acquire a lease extension. This is why it is often a good idea to increase the term of the lease. Sometimes it is difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease as mortgage companies less inclined to grant a loan on properties of this type. Lease extension can be a difficult process. We recommend you get professional assistance from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this arena

Last month I purchased a leasehold house in Biggleswade. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee 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. A critical element 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 a negotiator for a long established estate agency in Biggleswade where we have experienced a few flat sales put at risk as a result of short leases. I have been given conflicting advice from local Biggleswade conveyancing firms. Can you confirm whether the seller of a flat can start the lease extension process 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 buyer can avoid having to sit tight for 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 simultaneously with 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.

Biggleswade Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Questions you should ask before buying

Please note that where the lease has less than eighty years it will impact the marketability of the property. Check with your lender that they are happy with remaining years on the lease. A short lease means that you will most likely have to extend the lease sooner rather than later and you need to have some idea of what this would cost. For most Biggleswadelease extensions you would be be obliged to have owned the premises for 24 months in order to be entitled to exercise a lease extension. For many Biggleswade leaseholds the outlay for major works are not included within maintenance charges, albeit that some managing agents in Biggleswade ask leaseholders to contribute towards a reserve fund created for the specific purpose of establishing a fund for larger works. Are any of leasehold owners in dispute over their service charge payments?

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Biggleswade