Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only Seventy years left on my flat in Deganwy. I now wish to extend my lease but my landlord is absent. What options are available to me?

On the basis that 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 for permission 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 have used your best endeavours to track down the lessor. In some cases a specialist should be useful to conduct investigations and to produce a report which can be accepted by the court as proof that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a property lawyer both on proving the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing Deganwy.

Expecting to complete next month on a studio apartment in Deganwy. Conveyancing solicitors inform me that they report fully next week. What should I be looking out for?

Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Deganwy should include some of the following:

• You should be sent a copy of the lease

Will you be prohibited or prevented from having pets in the property?

Whether your lease has a provision for a sinking fund?

I don't know whether the lease allows me to alter or improve anything in the flat - you should know whether it applies to all alterations or just structural alteration, and whether consent is required

The landlord’s rights to access the flat you be made aware that your landlord has rights of access and I know how much notice s/he must provide.

Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your property and do you know what it means in practice?

What the implications are if you breach a clause of your lease? For details of the information to be included in your report on your leasehold property in Deganwy please enquire of your solicitor in ahead of your conveyancing in Deganwy

I am looking at a two maisonettes in Deganwy both have in the region of fifty years unexpired on the leases. Will this present a problem?

There is no doubt about it. A leasehold flat in Deganwy is a deteriorating asset as a result of the shortening lease. The closer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it reduces the salability of the property. For most purchasers and mortgage companies, leases with under 75 years become less and less attractive. On a more upbeat note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the premises for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of premises with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Deganwy conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. More often than not it is possible to negotiate informally with the freeholder to extend the lease They may agree to a smaller lump sum and an increase in the ground rent, but to shorter extension terms in return. You need to ensure that the agreed terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.

I work for a busy estate agent office in Deganwy where we have witnessed a number of leasehold sales derailed as a result of short leases. I have received conflicting advice from local Deganwy conveyancing solicitors. Could you clarify whether the seller of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

Provided that the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the buyer 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 has to be done prior to, or at the same time as completion of the sale.

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 purchaser.

If all goes to plan we aim to complete the disposal of our £400000 apartment in Deganwy next Thursday . The management company has quoted £420 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and 3 years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge an administration fee for a leasehold conveyance in Deganwy?

For most leasehold sales in Deganwy conveyancing will involve, questions about the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :

• Addressing pre-contract questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Deganwy
• Copies of the building insurance and schedule
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your conveyancer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Deganwy leasehold property is £350. For Deganwy conveyancing transactions it is customary for the seller to pay for these costs. The landlord or their agents are under no legal obligation to answer such questions most will be willing to do so - albeit often at exorbitant prices where the fees bear little relation to the work involved. Unfortunately there is no law that requires fixed charges for administrative tasks. Neither is there any legal time frame by which they are obliged to provide the information.

I am the registered owner of a basement flat in Deganwy, conveyancing formalities finalised half a dozen years ago. How much will my lease extension cost? Similar properties in Deganwy with over 90 years remaining are worth £212,000. The ground rent is £50 yearly. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2100

With only 80 years remaining on your lease we estimate the price of your lease extension to be between £9,500 and £11,000 as well as plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure in the absence of comprehensive investigations. Do not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other issues that need to be taken into account and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not take any other action based on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.

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Lease Extensions in Deganwy