I have recently realised that I have Fifty years left on my flat in Frant. I now wish to get lease extension but my landlord is can not be found. What are my options?

If you meet the appropriate requirements, 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 enable the lease to be granted an extra 90 years by the magistrate. 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 should be useful to conduct investigations and prepare an expert document to be used as evidence that the landlord is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a property lawyer both on devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing Frant.

I’m about to sell my garden flat in Frant.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just had a quarterly service charge demand – Do I pay up?

The sensible thing to do is clear 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.

Last month I purchased a leasehold house in Frant. Do I have any liability for service charges relating to a period prior to my ownership?

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 be sure 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).

What are your top tips when it comes to choosing a Frant conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?

When appointing a conveyancer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Frant conveyancing practice) it is imperative that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We recommend that you talk with several firms including non Frant conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions might be helpful:

• If the firm is not ALEP accredited then what is the reason?

In relation to leasehold conveyancing in Frant what are the most frequent lease defects?

Leasehold conveyancing in Frant is not unique. All leases are unique and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain clauses are erroneous. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• A provision to repair to or maintain elements of the property
• Insurance obligations
• 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

A defective lease will likely cause issues when trying to sell a property primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Barclays , The Royal Bank of Scotland, and Alliance & Leicester all have very detailed conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is defective they may refuse to grant the mortgage, forcing the purchaser to withdraw.

Frant Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Questions you should consider Prior to Purchasing

The prefered form of lease structure is a share of the freehold. In this situation the lessees have control and notwithstanding that a managing agent is often employed where the building is larger than a house conversion, the managing agent employed by the leaseholders. What is the length of the lease? The answer will be useful as a) areas can result in problems in the building as the common areas may start to deteriorate where maintenance remain unpaid b) if the tenants have a dispute with the managing agents you will wish to have all the details

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Frant