I only have Sixty One years left on my flat in Gorton. I need to get lease extension but my freeholder is missing. What are my options?

On the basis that 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 mean that your lease can be extended by the magistrate. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have done all that could be expected to find the freeholder. In some cases an enquiry agent may be useful to carry out a search and to produce an expert document which can be used as proof that the freeholder can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer both on proving the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing Gorton.

I today plan to offer on a house that seems to tick a lot of boxes, at a reasonable figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have subsequently found out that the title is leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are particular concerns purchasing a leasehold house in Gorton. Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been appointed. Will my lawyers set out the implications of buying a leasehold house in Gorton ?

The majority of houses in Gorton are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local conveyancer used to dealing with such properties who can help the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are purchasing in Gorton so you should seriously consider looking for a Gorton conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they are used to dealing with leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the unexpired lease term. As a leaseholder you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want to the property. The lease will likely included provisions such as obtaining the freeholder’sconsent to carry out alterations. It may be necessary to pay a service charge towards the maintenance of the communal areas where the property is part of an estate. Your conveyancer will report to you on the legal implications.

Back In 2002, I bought a leasehold house in Gorton. Conveyancing and Alliance & Leicester mortgage went though with no issue. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1995. The conveyancing solicitor in Gorton who previously acted has now retired.What should I do?

First make enquiries of HMLR to be sure that this person is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. It is not necessary to instruct a Gorton conveyancing firm to do this as it can be done on-line for £3. Rest assured that regardless, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Gorton from the perspective of speeding up the sale process?

• Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Gorton can be avoided if you get in touch lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers representatives.
• Many landlords or managing agents in Gorton levy fees for providing management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should discover the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The typical amount of time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most usual reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Gorton.

Some Gorton leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, it would be prudent to place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is financially capable of paying the annual 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 actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their solicitors.

If you have the benefit of shareholding in the freehold, you should make sure that you hold the original share document. Arranging a replacement share certificate is often a time consuming formality and frustrates many a Gorton home move. If a reissued share certificate is needed, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (where relevant) for this sooner rather than later.

You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be wise to double-check via your solicitors. A buyer’s conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to to exchange contracts if the lease term is less than 75 years. It is therefore important at an as soon as possible that you identify whether the lease term requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale.

If all goes to plan we aim to complete our sale of a £475000 garden flat in Gorton next Friday . The management company has quoted £348 for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and 3 years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Gorton?

For the majority of leasehold sales in Gorton conveyancing will involve, queries regarding the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :

• Addressing pre-exchange questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Gorton
• Supplying insurance information
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your lawyer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Gorton leasehold property is £350. For Gorton conveyancing transactions it is customary for the seller to pay for these costs. The landlord or their agents are under no legal obligation to answer such questions most will be willing to do so - albeit often at exorbitant prices where the fees bear little relation to the work involved. Unfortunately there is no law that requires fixed charges for administrative tasks. Neither is there any legal time frame by which they are required to supply answers.

Gorton Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Queries Prior to buying

In the main the cost for major works tend not to be included within maintenance charges, albeit that there some managing agents in Gorton require tenants to contribute towards a reserve fund and this is used to offset against larger works. How much is the ground rent and service charge? What prohibitions exist in the Gorton Lease?

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Gorton