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Blackburn leasehold conveyancing: Q and A’s

I only have Fifty years unexpired on my lease in Blackburn. I now wish to extend my lease but my freeholder is absent. What are my options?

On the basis that you meet the appropriate requirements, 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 lengthened 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 may be useful to try and locate and to produce a report to be used as evidence that the freeholder can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a solicitor in relation to investigating the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court overseeing Blackburn.

Due to exchange soon on a leasehold property in Blackburn. Conveyancing lawyers inform me that they report fully tomorrow. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

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

  • The length of the lease term You should be advised as what happens when the lease ends, and aware of the importance of the 80 year mark
  • Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, freeholder
  • Setting out your legal entitlements in relation to common areas in the building.E.G., does the lease grant a right of way over a path or staircase?
  • Ground rent - how much and when you need to pay, and also know whether this is subject to change
  • You should have a good understanding of the insurance provisions
  • The landlord’s obligations to repair and maintain the building. It is important that you know who is responsible for the repair and maintenance of every part of the building
  • What you can do if a neighbour is in violation of a provision in their lease? For details of the information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Blackburn please enquire of your conveyancer in ahead of your conveyancing in Blackburn

    • I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that seems to meet my requirements, at a reasonable price which is making it more attractive. I have subsequently found out that the title is leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are issues purchasing a leasehold house in Blackburn. Conveyancing solicitors have are about to be instructed. Will my lawyers set out the implications of buying a leasehold house in Blackburn ?

    The majority of houses in Blackburn are freehold rather than leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local solicitor used to dealing with such properties who can assist with the conveyancing process. We note that you are buying in Blackburn so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Blackburn conveyancing solicitor and check that they have experience in transacting on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the number of years remaining. Being 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 alterations. You may also be required to pay a contribution towards the maintenance of the communal areas where the property is located on an estate. Your solicitor will advise you fully on all the issues.

    I am employed by a long established estate agency in Blackburn where we see a number of leasehold sales put at risk due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received inconsistent advice from local Blackburn conveyancing firms. Please can you clarify whether the vendor of a flat can instigate 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. The benefit of this is that the buyer need not have 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 simultaneously with completion of the sale.

    Alternatively, it may be possible 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 purchaser.

    Can you offer any advice when it comes to choosing a Blackburn conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

    If you are instructing a property lawyer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Blackburn conveyancing practice) it is most important that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We suggested that you talk with two or three firms including non Blackburn conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions might be useful:

    • If they are not ALEP accredited then what is the reason?
  • How many lease extensions has the firm completed in Blackburn in the last 12 months?

    • Leasehold Conveyancing in Blackburn - Sample of Queries before buying

      What is the maintenance charge and ground rent on the apartment? Who takes charge for maintaining and repairing the block? Most Blackburn leasehold apartments will be liable to pay a service charge for the upkeep of the building invoiced on behalf of the freeholder. Should you purchase the flat you will have to meet this liability, usually quarterly during the year. This may be anything from several hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for bigger purpose-built blocks. In all likelihood there will be a ground rent to be met yearly, this is usually not a exorbitant amount, say approximately £25-£75 but you should to check it because sometimes it can be surprisingly expensive.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Blackburn