There are only 72 years left on my lease in Great Baddow. I need to get lease extension but my freeholder is can not be found. What should I do?

On the basis that 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. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have used your best endeavours to locate the freeholder. For most situations an enquiry agent would be useful to conduct investigations and prepare an expert document which can be accepted by the court as evidence that the landlord can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer in relation to devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court covering Great Baddow.

Expecting to sign contracts shortly on a ground floor flat in Great Baddow. Conveyancing solicitors inform me that they will have a report out to me on Monday. What should I be looking out for?

Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Great Baddow should include some of the following:

• The unexpired lease term You should be advised as what happens when the lease ends, and informed of the importance of the 80 year mark
• Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, freeholder
• Are pets allowed in the flat?
• Ground rent - how much and when you need to pay, and also know whether this is subject to change
• An explanation as to the provision in the lease to pay service charges - with regard to both the building, and the more general rights a leaseholder has
• Repair and maintenance of the flat

I have just started marketing my 2 bed apartment in Great Baddow.Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon but I have just had a quarterly service charge demand – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

The sensible thing to do is discharge 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 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 appears to tick a lot of boxes, at a great price which is making it more attractive. I have subsequently been informed that the title is leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are issues purchasing a house with a leasehold title in Great Baddow. Conveyancing advisers have are soon to be instructed. Will my lawyers set out the risks of buying a leasehold house in Great Baddow ?

The majority of houses in Great Baddow are freehold rather than leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local solicitor used to dealing with such properties who can help the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are buying in Great Baddow in which case you should be shopping around for a Great Baddow conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they have experience in transacting on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the unexpired lease term. As a leaseholder you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want to the property. The lease will likely included provisions such as obtaining the landlord’sconsent to carry out changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a maintenance charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the house is part of an estate. Your conveyancer should appraise you on the various issues.

I am attracted to a couple of maisonettes in Great Baddow which have in the region of forty five years left on the lease term. Will this present a problem?

There are no two ways about it. A leasehold flat in Great Baddow is a deteriorating asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The nearer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it adversely affects the salability of the premises. The majority of buyers and banks, 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 property 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 Great Baddow 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.

I invested in buying a basement flat in Great Baddow, conveyancing formalities finalised 10 years ago. How much will my lease extension cost? Corresponding properties in Great Baddow with a long lease are worth £175,000. The ground rent is £45 yearly. The lease ends on 21st October 2095

You have 69 years unexpired the likely cost is going to be between £9,500 and £11,000 as well as professional fees.

The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs without more comprehensive investigations. Do not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt additional concerns that need to be taken into account and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not take any other action based on this information without first getting professional advice.