I only have Fifty years unexpired on my lease in Boscombe. I now want to extend my lease but my landlord is can not be found. What should I do?

If 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 mean that your lease can be extended by the magistrate. You will be obliged to prove that you have used your best endeavours to locate the freeholder. For most situations a specialist would be useful to conduct investigations and prepare a report which can be used as evidence that the landlord can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer both on investigating the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Boscombe.

Expecting to exchange soon on a studio apartment in Boscombe. Conveyancing solicitors have said that they are sending me a report next week. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Boscombe should include some of the following:

• The physical extent of the property. This will be the apartment itself but could also incorporate a roof space or basement if applicable.
• Defining your rights in respect of common areas in the building.E.G., does the lease permit a right of way over a path or staircase?
• Does the lease prohibit wood flooring?
• You should be told what counts as a Nuisance in the lease
• An explanation as to the provision in the lease to pay service charges - with regard to both the building, and the more general rights a leaseholder has
• Whether your lease has a provision for a sinking fund?
• What you can do if a neighbour breach a clause of their lease?

Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my garden flat in Boscombe.Conveyancing has not commenced but I have just received a half-yearly maintenance charge demand – Do I pay up?

It best that you pay 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.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold house in Boscombe. Conveyancing and Norwich and Peterborough Building Society mortgage organised. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1998. The conveyancing solicitor in Boscombe who previously acted has now retired.What should I do?

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 Boscombe conveyancing lawyer to do this as it can be done on-line for £3. You should note that regardless, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

In relation to leasehold conveyancing in Boscombe what are the most common lease defects?

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

• Repairing obligations to or maintain elements of the property
• Insurance obligations
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

You will encounter 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. Santander, The Royal Bank of Scotland, and Alliance & Leicester all have express conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is problematic they may refuse to grant the mortgage, obliging the buyer to withdraw.

Boscombe Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Questions you should consider before buying

On the whole the cost for major works tend not to be wrapped into the service charges, albeit that a few managing agents in Boscombe obliged leaseholders to pay into a reserve fund created for the specific purpose of building a fund for larger works. What prohibitions exist in the Boscombe Lease? Best to be warned whether a new roof is being installed or some other significant cost is anticipated that will be shared between the tenants and will dramatically increase the the maintenance fees or result in a specific invoice.