There are only Fifty years remaining on my lease in Darwen. I now wish to get lease extension but my landlord is absent. What should I do?

If 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 enable the lease to 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 a specialist should be useful to try and locate and to produce an expert document to be accepted by the court as proof that the freeholder can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a conveyancer in relation to devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Darwen.

I am hoping to exchange soon on a basement flat in Darwen. Conveyancing solicitors have said that they will have a report out to me next week. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

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

• How long the lease is You should be advised as what happens when the lease expires, and aware of the importance of not letting the lease term falling below eighty years
• Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, landlord
• The physical extent of the premises. This will be the flat itself but may include a roof space or basement if appropriate.
• Will you be prohibited or prevented from having pets in the property?
• Ground rent - how much and when you need to pay, and also know whether this will change in the future
• An explanation as to the provision in the lease to pay service charges - with regard to both the building, and the more general rights a leaseholder has
• Repair and maintenance of the flat

I am attracted to a two flats in Darwen both have about fifty years left on the leases. should I be concerned?

There are plenty of short leases in Darwen. The lease is a right to use the property for a period of time. As the lease shortens the marketability of the lease reduces and it becomes more costly to extend the lease. For this reason it is often a good idea to extend the lease term. It is often difficult to sell a property with a short lease because mortgage lenders less inclined to grant a loan on properties of this type. Lease enfranchisement can be a difficult process. We advise that you seek professional assistance from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this area

What are your top tips when it comes to appointing a Darwen conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a property lawyer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Darwen conveyancing practice) it is imperative that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We suggested that you make enquires with several firms including non Darwen conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be useful:

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

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Darwen with the purpose of speeding up the sale process?

• Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Darwen can be bypassed where you instruct lawyers the minute you market your property and ask them to collate the leasehold information needed by the purchasers’ representatives.
• Many freeholders or Management Companies in Darwen levy fees for providing management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should find out the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack sought on or before finding a buyer, thus reducing delays. The average time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most frequent cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in Darwen.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s consent? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Darwen leases often stipulate that internal structural changes or addition of wooden flooring necessitate a licence issued by the Landlord acquiescing to such works. Should you fail to have the paperwork to hand you should not contact the landlord without contacting your solicitor in the first instance.
• If there is a history of conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved prior to the flat being put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be concerned about purchasing a flat where a dispute is unsettled. You may have to bite the bullet and pay any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as historic as opposed to unsettled.
• You may think that you are aware of the number of years remaining on your lease but you should verify this by asking your lawyers. A buyer’s conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the lease term is less than 80 years. It is therefore important at an early stage that you consider whether the lease term for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

Darwen Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Sample of Queries Prior to buying

How is the lease structured? What restrictions exist in the Darwen Lease?