I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that appears to meet my requirements, at a great figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have subsequently found out that the title is leasehold as opposed to freehold. I would have thought that there are issues buying a house with a leasehold title in Great Missenden. Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been appointed. Will they explain the issues?

Most houses in Great Missenden 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. We note that you are purchasing in Great Missenden so you should seriously consider looking for a Great Missenden 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 number of years remaining. Being a tenant you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions for example obtaining the freeholder’spermission to conduct alterations. It may be necessary to pay a service charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the house is part of an estate. Your conveyancer should advise you fully on all the issues.

I own a leasehold flat in Great Missenden. Conveyancing and Norwich and Peterborough Building Society mortgage are in place. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the freehold. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1992. The conveyancing solicitor in Great Missenden who acted for me is not around.Any advice?

First make enquiries of the Land Registry to make sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. It is not necessary to instruct a Great Missenden conveyancing firm to do this as it can be done on-line for £3. You should note that regardless, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

Last month I purchased a leasehold property in Great Missenden. Am I liable to pay 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. However, 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 ensure 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).

I am employed by a reputable estate agent office in Great Missenden where we see a number of leasehold sales jeopardised due to short leases. I have received contradictory information from local Great Missenden conveyancing firms. Could you clarify whether the vendor of a flat can commence the lease extension process for the buyer?

Provided that the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence 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 wait 2 years to extend their lease. 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.

An alternative approach is to agree the lease extension with the freeholder 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 purchaser.

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Great Missenden from the perspective of speeding up the sale process?

• Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Great Missenden can be bypassed where you instruct lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers solicitors.
• If you have carried out any alterations to the premises would they have required Landlord’s permission? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Great Missenden state that internal structural alterations or laying down wooden flooring require a licence issued by the Landlord approving such alterations. Should you fail to have the paperwork to hand you should not communicate with the landlord without contacting your solicitor in the first instance.

I bought a studio flat in Great Missenden, conveyancing was carried out 3 years ago. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Equivalent properties in Great Missenden with a long lease are worth £203,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £65 charged once a year. The lease expires on 21st October 2102

With just 78 years remaining on your lease the likely cost is going to be between £10,500 and £12,000 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of detailed due diligence. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt other issues that need to be taken into account and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward based on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Great Missenden