I have recently realised that I have Seventy years unexpired on my flat in Clophill. I now wish to extend my lease but my landlord is can not be found. 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 an order 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 prove that you or your lawyers have used your best endeavours to find the lessor. On the whole an enquiry agent may be helpful to try and locate and prepare a report which can be accepted by the court as evidence that the freeholder can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a conveyancer both on proving the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Clophill.

I have just started marketing my 2 bed apartment in Clophill.Conveyancing has not commenced but I have just received a quarterly maintenance charge demand – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

The sensible thing to do is 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 managing agents 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.

I own a leasehold flat in Clophill. Conveyancing and Barclays Direct mortgage organised. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1998. The conveyancing practitioner in Clophill who acted for me is not around.Any advice?

First contact the Land Registry to be sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. You do not need to instruct a Clophill conveyancing practitioner to do this as it can be done on-line for £3. You should note that in any event, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

What advice can you give us when it comes to appointing a Clophill conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?

When appointing a conveyancer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Clophill conveyancing practice) it is essential that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We advise that you talk with several firms including non Clophill conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions could be helpful:

• If the firm is not ALEP accredited then what is the reason?
• What volume of lease extensions have they carried out in Clophill in the last year?

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Clophill from the point of view of speeding up the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Clophill can be reduced if you instruct lawyers as soon as you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers conveyancers.
• The majority landlords or Management Companies in Clophill levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold property. 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 accelerating the process. 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 Clophill.
• If you have carried out any alterations to the residence would they have required Landlord’s approval? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Clophill leases often stipulate that internal structural changes or installing wooden flooring require a licence from the Landlord consenting to such works. If you fail to have the consents to hand you should not contact the landlord without checking with your solicitor in the first instance.
• Some Clophill leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. Any bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are able to meet the yearly 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 purchasers or their solicitors.
• If there is a history of conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are resolved prior to the flat being marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be warry about purchasing a property where a dispute is ongoing. You may need to swallow your pride and discharge any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose details of the dispute to the buyers, but it is better to present the dispute as historic rather than unsettled.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Clophill - Sample of Questions you should consider before buying

In the main the outlay for major works tend not to be included within service charges, albeit that a few managing agents in Clophill obliged leaseholders to pay into a sinking fund created for the specific purpose of building a fund for larger works. It is important to be aware whether changing the roof or some other major work is pending that will be shared between the leasehold owners and could well dramatically increase the the maintenance costs or result in a one time payment.