There are only Sixty One years remaining on my flat in Fairford. I now want to extend my lease but my freeholder is missing. What are my options?

If you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be lengthened by the magistrate. However, you will be required to prove that you have done all that could be expected to find the freeholder. On the whole an enquiry agent should be useful to carry out a search and prepare an expert document to be accepted by the court as proof that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a property lawyer in relation to investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing Fairford.

I’m about to sell my ground floor apartment in Fairford.Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon but I have just received a quarterly maintenance charge demand – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

The sensible thing to do is pay the service charge 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 management companies will not acknowledge the buyer until 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 today plan to offer on a house that seems to meet my requirements, at a reasonable price which is making it all the more appealing. I have just found out that it's a leasehold as opposed to freehold. I would have thought that there are particular concerns buying a house with a leasehold title in Fairford. Conveyancing advisers have not yet been instructed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Fairford are freehold and not leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area can assist with the conveyancing process. We note that you are buying in Fairford so you should seriously consider looking for a Fairford conveyancing solicitor and check that they are used to 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 with the house. The lease will likely included provisions for example requiring the landlord’spermission to carry out changes to the property. You may also be required to pay a contribution towards the maintenance of the estate where the property is located on an estate. Your solicitor will appraise you on the various issues.

I am looking at a couple of apartments in Fairford both have in the region of forty five years left on the lease term. Will this present a problem?

There is no doubt about it. A leasehold apartment in Fairford is a wasting asset as a result of the shortening lease. The closer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it adversely affects the marketability of the property. For most purchasers and mortgage companies, leases with less than 75 years become less and less marketable. 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 a residence 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 Fairford conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. A more straightforward and quicker method of extending would be to contact your landlord directly and sound him out on the prospect of extending the lease You may find he or she is happy to negotiate informally and willing to consider your offer straight off, without having to involve anyone else. This will save you time and money and it could help you reach a lower price on the lease. You need to ensure that any new 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.

Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on the disposal of our £ 475000 maisonette in Fairford next week. The freeholder has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and 3 years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Fairford?

Fairford conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes usually requires the purchaser’s conveyancer submitting enquiries for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is not legally bound to answer these enquiries the majority will be willing to do so. They are entitled invoice a reasonable administration fee for answering questions or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average fee for the information that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some transactions it exceeds £800. The administration charge required by the landlord must be sent together with a summary of entitlements and obligations in respect of administration fees, otherwise the charge is not strictly payable. Reality however dictates that one has no choice but to pay whatever is requested of you if you want to sell the property.

Fairford Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Questions you should consider before Purchasing

Who takes charge for maintaining and repairing the building? Is there a share of the freehold? The answer will be helpful as a) areas may result in problems for the building as the common areas may start to deteriorate where maintenance remain unpaid b) if the leaseholders have an issue with the running of the building you will wish to know about it