Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only Sixty One years left on my lease in Craven Arms. I need to get lease extension but my freeholder is missing. What should I do?

If you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be extended by the Court. However, you will be required to prove that you have done all that could be expected to locate the freeholder. On the whole an enquiry agent would be helpful to try and locate and to produce a report which can be accepted by the court as evidence that the landlord can not be located. 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 covering Craven Arms.

I today plan to offer on a house that seems to be perfect, at a great figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have just found out that it's a leasehold as opposed to freehold. I would have thought that there are particular concerns buying a house with a leasehold title in Craven Arms. Conveyancing solicitors have not yet been appointed. Will my lawyers set out the risks of buying a leasehold house in Craven Arms ?

Most houses in Craven Arms are freehold rather than leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can assist with the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are purchasing in Craven Arms so you should seriously consider looking for a Craven Arms conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they have experience in transacting on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. As a leaseholder you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions such as requiring the freeholder’spermission to carry out alterations. It may be necessary to pay a contribution towards the upkeep of the communal areas where the property is part of an estate. Your lawyer will advise you fully on all the issues.

Back In 2005, I bought a leasehold flat in Craven Arms. Conveyancing and Bank of Scotland mortgage went though with no issue. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1997. The conveyancing practitioner in Craven Arms who acted for me is not around.Do I pay?

The first thing you should do is make enquiries of HMLR to be sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is in fact the new freeholder. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Craven Arms conveyancing solicitor to do this as it can be done on-line for less than a fiver. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I work for a long established estate agency in Craven Arms where we have experienced a few leasehold sales jeopardised as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received conflicting advice from local Craven Arms conveyancing firms. Can you clarify whether the vendor of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means 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 disposal of the property.

An alternative approach is 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.

When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Craven Arms what are the most frequent lease defects?

Leasehold conveyancing in Craven Arms is not unique. All leases are unique and legal mistakes in the legal wording can result in certain clauses are missing. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• A provision to repair to or maintain elements of the building
• Insurance obligations
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

A defective lease can cause problems when trying to sell a property as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Barclays , Norwich and Peterborough Building Society, and Alliance & Leicester 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.

I acquired a 2 bed flat in Craven Arms, conveyancing having been completed half a dozen years ago. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Equivalent properties in Craven Arms with over 90 years remaining are worth £229,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 invoiced every year. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2102

With only 77 years unexpired we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £9,500 and £11,000 as well as legals.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of detailed due diligence. Do not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt additional issues that need to be considered and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not take any other action based on this information before getting professional advice.

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Lease Extensions in Craven Arms