I have recently realised that I have 72 years unexpired on my lease in Gloucester. I now wish to get lease extension but my landlord is can not be found. 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 magistrate. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you have done all that could be expected to track down the freeholder. In some cases an enquiry agent would be useful to conduct investigations and to produce a report to be used as proof that the freeholder can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a conveyancer both on investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Gloucester.

I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that seems to be perfect, at a reasonable figure which is making it more attractive. I have just found out that it's a leasehold as opposed to freehold. I am assuming that there are particular concerns purchasing a leasehold house in Gloucester. Conveyancing lawyers have are soon to be instructed. Will my lawyers set out the risks of buying a leasehold house in Gloucester ?

The majority of houses in Gloucester are freehold and not leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area can help the conveyancing process. it is apparent that you are purchasing in Gloucester in which case you should be shopping around for a Gloucester conveyancing solicitor and check that they are used to dealing with leasehold houses. First you will need to check the unexpired lease term. As a tenant you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want with the house. The lease comes with conditions for example requiring the freeholder’sconsent to conduct changes to the property. You may also be required to pay a contribution towards the upkeep of the estate where the house is located on an estate. Your conveyancer should appraise you on the various issues.

I am a negotiator for a long established estate agency in Gloucester where we see a number of leasehold sales put at risk as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given conflicting advice from local Gloucester conveyancing solicitors. Can you shed some light as to whether the seller 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 sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done 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.

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Gloucester from the point of view of saving time on the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Gloucester can be bypassed if you instruct lawyers as soon as you market your property and ask them to collate the leasehold information needed by the purchasers’ lawyers.
• Many freeholders or Management Companies in Gloucester charge for providing management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should find out the actual amount of the charges. The management pack can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The average time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most frequent cause of frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Gloucester.
• If you have carried out any alterations to the property would they have required Landlord’s approval? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Gloucester leases often stipulate that internal structural changes or addition of wooden flooring necessitate a licence from the Landlord consenting to such alterations. If you dont have the consents to hand you should not communicate with the landlord without checking with your lawyer in the first instance.
• A minority of Gloucester leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are financially capable of paying the yearly service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their lawyers.
• If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should make sure that you are holding the original share certificate. Arranging a duplicate share certificate is often a time consuming process and delays many a Gloucester home move. If a duplicate share is required, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (if relevant) for this sooner rather than later.

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

Leasehold conveyancing in Gloucester is not unique. Most leases are unique and legal mistakes in the legal wording can result in certain clauses are missing. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the property
• 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

A defective lease will likely cause problems when trying to sell a property as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Lloyds TSB Bank, Skipton Building Society, and Clydesdale all have express 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 problematic they may refuse to grant the mortgage, obliging the purchaser to pull out.

I am the registered owner of a basement flat in Gloucester, conveyancing formalities finalised half a dozen years ago. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Similar properties in Gloucester with a long lease are worth £220,000. The ground rent is £45 levied per year. The lease runs out on 21st October 2090

With just 64 years unexpired we estimate the price of your lease extension to be between £13,300 and £15,400 plus costs.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure without more comprehensive due diligence. Do not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt other concerns that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward placing reliance on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.