I only have Sixty One years unexpired on my lease in Brighouse. I am keen to get lease extension but my freeholder is absent. What options are available to me?

On the basis that 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 enable the lease to be granted an extra 90 years by the Court. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have used your best endeavours to find the landlord. In some cases a specialist may be useful to carry out a search and prepare a report to be accepted by the court as proof that the freeholder can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a property lawyer both on investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Brighouse.

I am hoping to sign contracts shortly on a ground floor flat in Brighouse. Conveyancing solicitors inform me that they report fully tomorrow. What should I be looking out for?

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

• Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, freeholder
• Defining your legal entitlements in respect of common areas in the block.For example, does the lease grant a right of way over a path or hallways?
• Does the lease prevent you from subletting the flat, or working from home
• Ground rent - how much and when you need to pay, and also know whether this will change in the future
• 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
• You should have a good understanding of the insurance provisions
• The landlord’s rights to access the flat you be made aware that your landlord has rights of access and I know how much notice s/he must provide.

I am attracted to a couple of maisonettes in Brighouse which have about 50 years unexpired on the leases. Do I need to be concerned?

There is no doubt about it. A leasehold apartment in Brighouse is a wasting asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The closer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it reduces the marketability of the premises. For most buyers and lenders, leases with under 75 years become less and less attractive. On a more upbeat note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the premises for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of a residence with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Brighouse conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. More often than not it is possible to negotiate informally with the freeholder to extend the lease They may agree to a smaller lump sum and an increase in the ground rent, but to shorter extension terms in return. You need to ensure that any new terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Brighouse with the purpose of expediting the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Brighouse can be avoided where you get in touch lawyers as soon as you market your property and request that they start to collate the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers representatives.
• The majority freeholders or managing agents in Brighouse levy fees for providing management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should find out the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus reducing delays. The typical amount of time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most usual cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in Brighouse.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s approval? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Brighouse leases often stipulate that internal structural changes or laying down wooden flooring require a licence from the Landlord approving such alterations. Should you fail to have the paperwork to hand do not contact the landlord without checking with your lawyer in the first instance.
• A minority of Brighouse leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are able to meet the annual service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their lawyers.
• You may think that you are aware of the number of years left on your lease but you should double-check via your conveyancers. A purchaser's lawyer will not be happy to advise their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the lease term is less than 80 years. In the circumstances it is essential at an as soon as possible that you identify whether the lease requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale.

If all goes to plan we aim to complete the sale of our £ 250000 maisonette in Brighouse next Tuesday . The landlords agents has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and previous years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge an administration fee for a leasehold conveyance in Brighouse?

Brighouse conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes often requires the purchaser’s conveyancer submitting questions for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to address these enquiries the majority will be willing to do so. They are entitled charge a reasonable charge for answering enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average costs for the information that you are referring to is £350, in some cases it is above £800. The administration charge demanded by the landlord must be accompanied by a synopsis of entitlements and obligations in respect of administration charges, without which the invoice is not strictly payable. In reality one has little option but to pay whatever is requested of you if you want to exchange contracts with the buyer.

I am the registered owner of a 1 bedroom flat in Brighouse, conveyancing formalities finalised 10 years ago. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Corresponding properties in Brighouse with a long lease are worth £241,000. The ground rent is £65 per annum. The lease terminates on 21st October 2085

With just 59 years unexpired we estimate the price of your lease extension to be between £20,900 and £24,200 plus legals.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to supply the actual costs in the absence of comprehensive due diligence. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional issues that need to be taken into account and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action placing reliance on this information without first getting professional advice.