I have recently realised that I have Sixty One years remaining on my flat in Bootle. I am keen to extend my lease but my landlord is missing. What should I do?

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 magistrate. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you have done all that could be expected to track down the lessor. On the whole a specialist may be useful to try and locate and prepare an expert document to be used as proof that the landlord is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a conveyancer both on devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Bootle.

I've found a house that appears to tick a lot of boxes, at a great price which is making it more attractive. I have since found out that the title is leasehold as opposed to freehold. I am assuming that there are issues buying a house with a leasehold title in Bootle. Conveyancing solicitors have are soon to be appointed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Bootle 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 purchasing in Bootle in which case you should be looking for a Bootle conveyancing practitioner and be sure that they have experience in advising on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the number of years remaining. Being a lessee you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions for example obtaining the freeholder’spermission to conduct changes to the property. You may also be required to pay a service charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the house is located on an estate. Your solicitor should report to you on the legal implications.

Back In 2005, I bought a leasehold house in Bootle. Conveyancing and TSB mortgage went though with no issue. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1993. The conveyancing practitioner in Bootle who previously acted has now retired.Do I pay?

The first thing you should do is make enquiries of the Land Registry to be sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. There is no need to incur the fees of a Bootle conveyancing firm to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for £3. You should note that regardless, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I work for a long established estate agent office in Bootle where we see a number of flat sales jeopardised due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given conflicting advice from local Bootle conveyancing solicitors. Can you clarify whether the owner of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

As long as 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 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 sale.

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.

All being well we will complete the disposal of our £500000 maisonette in Bootle next week. The managing agents has quoted £300 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and previous years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge an administration fee for a flat conveyance in Bootle?

Bootle conveyancing on leasehold flats more often than not involves the buyer’s lawyer submitting questions for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is not legally bound to respond to these enquiries most will be willing to do so. They are at liberty charge a reasonable charge for responding to questions or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average costs for the paperwork that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some situations it exceeds £800. The administration charge levied by the landlord must be sent together with a summary of entitlements and obligations in relation to administration fees, otherwise the charge is technically not due. Reality however dictates that one has little choice but to pay whatever is demanded if you want to complete the sale of your home.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Bootle - Examples of Queries Prior to Purchasing

Are any of leasehold owners in arrears of their service charge liability? Generally speaking the cost for major works are not wrapped into the maintenance charges, although there some managing agents in Bootle require tenants to contribute towards a reserve fund and this is used to offset against larger repairs or maintenance. What prohibitions are there in the Bootle Lease?

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Lease Extensions in Bootle