I only have Seventy years remaining on my lease in Disley. I need to get lease extension but my landlord is absent. What options are available to me?

If you qualify, 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 mean that your lease can be lengthened by the Court. However, you will be required to prove that you or your lawyers have done all that could be expected to find the landlord. In some cases a specialist should be helpful to try and locate and to produce a report to be accepted by the court as evidence that the freeholder can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a conveyancer in relation to devolving into the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court covering Disley.

Looking forward to sign contracts shortly on a garden flat in Disley. Conveyancing lawyers assured me that they report fully on Monday. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

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

• The total extent of the property. This will be the flat itself but might incorporate a loft or cellar if appropriate.
• Setting out your rights in respect of the communal areas in the building.For example, does the lease permit a right of way over an accessway or hallways?
• Does the lease prohibit wood flooring?
• Does the lease prevent you from letting out the property, or having a home office for business
• You should have a good understanding of the insurance provisions
• Repair and maintenance of the flat
• Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your premises and do you know what it means in practice?

I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that appears to be perfect, at a reasonable price which is making it all the more appealing. I have subsequently discovered that it's a leasehold as opposed to freehold. I am assuming that there are issues buying a leasehold house in Disley. Conveyancing advisers have are about to be appointed. Will they explain the issues?

Most houses in Disley are freehold rather than leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area can assist with the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are purchasing in Disley in which case you should be shopping around for a Disley conveyancing practitioner and check that they have experience in advising on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the number of years remaining. Being a leaseholder you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions such as obtaining the freeholder’sconsent to conduct alterations. It may be necessary to pay a contribution towards the maintenance of the communal areas where the property is part of an estate. Your lawyer should report to you on the legal implications.

Last month I purchased a leasehold house in Disley. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to completion of my purchase?

In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. Strange as it may seem, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. It is an essential part of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to ensure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.

If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).

I am employed by a busy estate agency in Disley where we have experienced a few leasehold sales put at risk due to short leases. I have received inconsistent advice from local Disley conveyancing solicitors. Could you clarify whether the vendor of a flat can initiate the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

As long as 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. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser need not have to wait 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.

Alternatively, it may be possible 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.

I am the registered owner of a basement flat in Disley, conveyancing having been completed half a dozen years ago. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Similar flats in Disley with over 90 years remaining are worth £234,000. The ground rent is £55 yearly. The lease ceases on 21st October 2084

You have 58 years unexpired we estimate the price of your lease extension to be between £26,600 and £30,800 plus professional fees.

The figure above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed investigations. Do not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be other concerns that need to be taken into account and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action placing reliance on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.