Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only 62 years left on my lease in Bridport. I now wish to extend my lease but my landlord is missing. What are my options?

If you qualify, 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 magistrate. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you have used your best endeavours to find the freeholder. For most situations an enquiry agent would be useful to conduct investigations and prepare a report to be used as evidence that the landlord is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a property lawyer in relation to investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Bridport.

I today plan to offer on a house that seems to meet my requirements, at a great price which is making it more attractive. I have since discovered that the title is leasehold as opposed to freehold. I am assuming that there are issues buying a house with a leasehold title in Bridport. Conveyancing lawyers have are soon to be instructed. Will my lawyers set out the implications of buying a leasehold house in Bridport ?

The majority of houses in Bridport are freehold and not leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area can assist with the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are buying in Bridport in which case you should be shopping around for a Bridport conveyancing practitioner and check that they have experience in advising on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the number of years remaining. As a leaseholder you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease comes with conditions for example requiring the freeholder’sconsent to carry out alterations. It may be necessary to pay a contribution towards the maintenance of the communal areas where the house is part of an estate. Your solicitor will report to you on the legal implications.

I own a leasehold flat in Bridport. Conveyancing and TSB mortgage went though with no issue. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the freehold. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1998. The conveyancing solicitor in Bridport who acted for me is not around.What should I do?

First make enquiries of HMLR to be sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Bridport conveyancing practitioner to do this as it can be done on-line for a few pound. You should note that regardless, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

I am employed by a reputable estate agency in Bridport where we have witnessed a few flat sales put at risk due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received conflicting advice from local Bridport conveyancing firms. Can you clarify whether the vendor of a flat can start the lease extension process for the buyer?

Provided that the seller has been the owner 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 proposed purchaser 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.

Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on our sale of a £225000 garden flat in Bridport in 8 days. The management company has quoted £384 for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and previous years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Bridport?

Bridport conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes more often than not requires the buyer’s lawyer sending questions for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is not legally bound to answer these enquiries most will be willing to assist. They may levy a reasonable charge for responding to questions or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average fee for the paperwork that you are referring to is £350, in some cases it is in excess of £800. The management information fee levied by the landlord must be accompanied by a synopsis of rights and obligations in respect of administration fees, otherwise the invoice is technically not due. Reality however dictates that you have little option but to pay whatever is demanded should you wish to complete the sale of your home.

Bridport Leasehold Conveyancing - Sample of Queries before buying

The prefered form of lease structure is if the freehold title is in the ownership of the leaseholders. In this situation the lessees enjoy control and notwithstanding that a managing agent is frequently employed if it is bigger than a house conversion, the managing agent is directed by the tenants. The majority of Bridport leasehold flats will be liable to pay a service bill for maintenance of the building levied by the freeholder. Should you acquire the apartment you will have to pay this liability, usually in instalments throughout the year. This could be anything from several hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for bigger purpose-built blocks. In all likelihood there will be a rentcharge for you to pay yearly, ordinarily this is not a exorbitant figure, say around £25-£75 but you should to check as on occasion it could be many hundreds of pounds. Where a Bridport lease has fewer than 80 years it will impact the value of the property. It is worth checking with your bank that they are content with residual term of the lease. A short lease means that you will almost definitely need a lease extension at some point and you need to have some idea of how much this will be. For most Bridportlease extensions you will need to own the residence for a couple of years before you are legally able to exercise a lease extension.

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Lease Extensions in Bridport