There are only 72 years remaining on my flat in Dartmouth. I am keen to get lease extension but my landlord is can not be found. What should I do?

If you meet the appropriate requirements, 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 magistrate. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you have done all that could be expected to track down the lessor. In some cases an enquiry agent should be useful to carry out a search and prepare a report to be used as proof that the freeholder can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a conveyancer in relation to investigating the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Dartmouth.

Expecting to sign contracts shortly on a basement flat in Dartmouth. Conveyancing solicitors have said that they report fully next week. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Dartmouth should include some of the following:

• How long the lease is You should be advised as what happens when the lease ends, and informed of the importance of the 80 year mark

I have just started marketing my ground floor flat in Dartmouth.Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon but I have just had a quarterly maintenance charge demand – Do I pay up?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should pay the invoice 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 management companies will not acknowledge the buyer unless 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. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that seems to meet my requirements, at a great price which is making it all the more appealing. I have since found out that the title is leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are particular concerns buying a leasehold house in Dartmouth. Conveyancing lawyers have are about to be instructed. Will my lawyers set out the implications of buying a leasehold house in Dartmouth ?

The majority of houses in Dartmouth are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can assist with the conveyancing process. it is apparent that you are purchasing in Dartmouth in which case you should be looking for a Dartmouth conveyancing practitioner and be sure that they have experience in transacting on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the number of years remaining. Being a lessee you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want to the property. The lease will likely included provisions such as requiring the freeholder’spermission to conduct alterations. It may be necessary to pay a maintenance charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the house is part of an estate. Your conveyancer should appraise you on the various issues.

What makes a Dartmouth lease problematic?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Dartmouth. All leases are unique and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain clauses are missing. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the premises
• 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 difficulties when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Accord Mortgages Ltd, The Royal Bank of Scotland, and Clydesdale all have express requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is defective they may refuse to provide security, obliging the buyer to withdraw.

Dartmouth Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Questions you should ask before buying

What is the annual service fee and ground rent? The majority of Dartmouth leasehold apartments will have a service bill for maintenance of the block invoiced on behalf of the freeholder. Should you acquire the property you will have to meet this amount, usually quarterly during the year. This could vary from a few hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for large purpose-built blocks. There will also be a rentcharge for you to pay yearly, ordinarily this is not a large amount, say about £50-£100 but you need to enquire it because sometimes it can be many hundreds of pounds. Who manages the block?

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Dartmouth