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Darwen leasehold conveyancing Example Support Desk Enquiries

I have recently realised that I have 62 years left on my flat in Darwen. I am keen to extend my lease but my landlord is can not be found. What should I do?

On the basis that 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 extended by the Court. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have made all reasonable attempts to track down the freeholder. For most situations an enquiry agent would be helpful to carry out a search and prepare a report which can be accepted by the court as evidence that the landlord can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a solicitor both on proving the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court overseeing Darwen.

I am attracted to a couple of flats in Darwen both have in the region of 50 years remaining on the lease term. Do I need to be concerned?

There are plenty of short leases in Darwen. The lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the property for a prescribed time frame. As a lease gets shorter the value of the lease decreases and it becomes more expensive to acquire a lease extension. For this reason it is often a good idea to extend the lease term. More often than not it is difficult to sell a property with a short lease because mortgage lenders less inclined to grant a loan on properties of this type. Lease extension can be a difficult process. We advise that you get professional assistance from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this field

I am employed by a long established estate agent office in Darwen where we have witnessed a number of leasehold sales derailed due to short leases. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Darwen conveyancing solicitors. Could you clarify whether the seller of a flat can instigate 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 start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the buyer need not have to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed before, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

Alternatively, it may be possible 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.

What are your top tips when it comes to choosing a Darwen conveyancing firm to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

If you are instructing a property lawyer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Darwen conveyancing practice) it is most important that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We recommend that you talk with two or three firms including non Darwen conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be of use:

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

    • Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Darwen with the intention of saving time on the sale process?

    • A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Darwen can be bypassed if you appoint lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers lawyers.
    • Many landlords or Management Companies in Darwen levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the fee that they propose to charge. The management information 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 frequent reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Darwen.
  • Some Darwen 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 financial (bank) and professional references. The bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is able to meet the annual 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 buyers or their lawyers.
  • If you hold a share in a the Management Company, you should ensure that you hold the original share certificate. Organising a re-issued share certificate can be a time consuming formality and frustrates many a Darwen conveyancing transaction. If a new share certificate is required, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (if applicable) for this at the earliest opportunity.
  • You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but it would be advisable verify this by asking your solicitors. A buyer’s lawyer will not be happy to advise their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the remaining number of years is under 80 years. It is therefore essential at an early stage that you consider whether the lease for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

    • Leasehold Conveyancing in Darwen - A selection of Questions you should ask Prior to Purchasing

      This question is useful as a) areas may cause problems for the building as the communal areas may begin to deteriorate where services remain unpaid b) if the leasehold owners have an issue with the running of the building you will wish to know about it Are any of leasehold owners in arrears of their service charge payments? Most Darwen leasehold apartments will be liable to pay a service charge for the upkeep of the building set on behalf of the management company. Where you purchase the property you will have to meet this liability, normally quarterly during the year. This may be anything from a few hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for blocks with lifts and large common grounds. There will also be a ground rent to be met annual, this is usually not a exorbitant sum, say approximately £50-£100 but you need to enquire as occasionally it could be surprisingly expensive.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Darwen