I only have 62 years remaining on my lease in Eaton Bray. I am keen to extend my lease but my landlord is absent. What are my options?

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 granted an extra 90 years by the Court. However, you will be required to prove that you have made all reasonable attempts to find the freeholder. For most situations a specialist should be useful to conduct investigations and prepare a report to be accepted by the court as evidence that the landlord is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a solicitor in relation to devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing Eaton Bray.

I have just started marketing my ground floor flat in Eaton Bray.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just had a quarterly maintenance charge demand – what should I do?

It best that you clear 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 managing agents 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've found a house that seems to tick a lot of boxes, at a great figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have just found out that the title is leasehold as opposed to freehold. I would have thought that there are particular concerns buying a house with a leasehold title in Eaton Bray. Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed. Will my lawyers set out the implications of buying a leasehold house in Eaton Bray ?

Most houses in Eaton Bray are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area can help the conveyancing process. it is apparent that you are purchasing in Eaton Bray so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Eaton Bray conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they have experience in transacting on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the unexpired lease term. 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’spermission to conduct changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a contribution towards the maintenance of the communal areas where the house is located on an estate. Your lawyer will report to you on the legal implications.

I am a negotiator for a long established estate agency in Eaton Bray where we see a number of flat sales derailed due to short leases. I have received inconsistent advice from local Eaton Bray conveyancing firms. Can you clarify whether the vendor of a flat can start 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 for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed before, or simultaneously with 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 buyer.

When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Eaton Bray what are the most frequent lease problems?

Leasehold conveyancing in Eaton Bray is not unique. Most leases are unique and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain provisions are missing. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• A provision to repair to or maintain elements of the building
• A duty to insure the building
• 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. Halifax, Leeds Building Society, and Clydesdale all have express conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is defective they may refuse to provide security, obliging the purchaser to pull out.

I purchased a leasehold flat in Eaton Bray, conveyancing having been completed 2006. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Similar flats in Eaton Bray with over 90 years remaining are worth £203,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £60 invoiced annually. The lease ends on 21st October 2076

You have 50 years left to run we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £33,300 and £38,400 plus 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 detailed due diligence. Do not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be other issues that need to be taken into account and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward based on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.