Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only Fifty years unexpired on my lease in Cherry Willingham. I need to get lease extension but my freeholder is absent. What should I do?

On the basis that you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be granted an extra 90 years by the magistrate. You will be obliged to prove that you have used your best endeavours to locate the freeholder. For most situations an enquiry agent may be useful to conduct investigations and to produce an expert document which can be accepted by the court as proof that the landlord can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer in relation to devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Cherry Willingham.

I own a leasehold flat in Cherry Willingham. Conveyancing and Barclays Direct mortgage went though with no issue. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1994. The conveyancing practitioner in Cherry Willingham who previously acted has now retired.Any advice?

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 in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. It is not necessary to instruct a Cherry Willingham conveyancing solicitor to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. 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.

I am a negotiator for a long established estate agent office in Cherry Willingham where we have witnessed a number of flat sales jeopardised as a result of short leases. I have received contradictory information from local Cherry Willingham conveyancing firms. Can you shed some light as to whether the seller of a flat can start the lease extension process 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 kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the buyer can avoid having to wait 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.

Alternatively, it may be possible 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 purchaser.

If all goes to plan we aim to complete our sale of a £275000 maisonette in Cherry Willingham on Thursday in a week. The freeholder has quoted £348 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and 3 years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge an administration fee for a leasehold conveyance in Cherry Willingham?

Cherry Willingham conveyancing on leasehold flats normally necessitates the purchaser’s conveyancer sending enquiries for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is not legally bound to address such questions the majority will be willing to assist. They may levy a reasonable administration fee for responding to questions or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average costs for the paperwork that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some cases it is in excess of £800. The management information fee required by the landlord must be accompanied by a summary of rights and obligations in respect of administration charges, without which the charge is not strictly payable. Reality however dictates that one has little option but to pay whatever is demanded if you want to sell the property.

What are the common defects that you come across in leases for Cherry Willingham properties?

Leasehold conveyancing in Cherry Willingham is not unique. Most leases is drafted differently and drafting errors can result in certain provisions are not included. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the property
• Insurance obligations
• A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
• Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

You could have 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. Lloyds TSB Bank, Coventry Building Society, and Nottingham Building Society all have very detailed requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to provide security, forcing the purchaser to withdraw.

Cherry Willingham Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Queries before buying

For many Cherry Willingham leaseholds the outlay for major works tend not to be incorporated into the maintenance charges, albeit that some managing agents in Cherry Willingham ask leasehold owners to contribute towards a sinking fund created for the specific intention of establishing a fund for larger repairs or maintenance. This information is helpful as a) areas can cause problems in the building as the communal areas may begin to deteriorate where repairs remain unpaid b) if the tenants have a dispute with the managing agents you will need to know about it It is important to be aware if window replacement or some other significant cost is due shortly to be shared amongst the leaseholders and will dramatically increase the the maintenance fees or require a one time payment.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Cherry Willingham