There are only Sixty One years left on my lease in Cross Keys. I am keen to extend my lease but my landlord is missing. What are my options?

If 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 enable the lease to be granted an extra 90 years by the Court. However, you will be required to prove that you have made all reasonable attempts to track down the freeholder. In some cases an enquiry agent should be useful to carry out a search and to produce an expert document which can be accepted by the court as proof that the landlord is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a property lawyer both on investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Cross Keys.

Back In 2005, I bought a leasehold flat in Cross Keys. Conveyancing and Accord Mortgages Ltd mortgage went though with no issue. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1995. The conveyancing practitioner in Cross Keys who acted for me is not around.Do I pay?

First make enquiries of the Land Registry to be sure that this person is indeed the new freeholder. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Cross Keys conveyancing firm to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. Rest assured 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.

I work for a busy estate agent office in Cross Keys where we see a few flat sales derailed as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received conflicting advice from local Cross Keys conveyancing solicitors. Could you confirm whether the vendor of a flat can start the lease extension formalities 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. This means that the proposed purchaser need not have to wait 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

An alternative approach is 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 buyer.

What advice can you give us when it comes to choosing a Cross Keys conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a conveyancer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Cross Keys conveyancing firm) it is imperative that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We suggested that you talk with several firms including non Cross Keys conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions could be of use:

• How experienced is the practice with lease extension legislation?
• If the firm is not ALEP accredited then why not?

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Cross Keys from the point of view of speeding up the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Cross Keys can be bypassed if you instruct lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and ask them to collate the leasehold documentation needed by the purchasers’ lawyers.
• Many landlords or managing agents in Cross Keys levy fees for providing management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack sought on or before finding a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The typical amount of time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most usual cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in Cross Keys.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s permission? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Cross Keys leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or laying down wooden flooring calls for a licence issued by the Landlord consenting to such changes. Where you dont have the approvals to hand do not contact the landlord without contacting your lawyer before hand.
• If you have had any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are resolved before the property is marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where there is a current dispute. You may need to swallow your pride and pay any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal particulars of the dispute to the buyers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as over rather than ongoing.
• If you hold a share in a the Management Company, you should ensure that you hold the original share certificate. Arranging a replacement share certificate can be a lengthy process and delays many a Cross Keys home move. If a reissued share certificate is required, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (if relevant) for this at the earliest opportunity.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Cross Keys - A selection of Questions you should ask Prior to buying

How much is the ground rent and service charge?