Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only Sixty One years remaining on my flat in Halifax. I need to get lease extension but my freeholder is missing. What should I do?

If you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be lengthened by the Court. You will be obliged to prove that you have used your best endeavours to track down the landlord. In some cases an enquiry agent may be helpful to carry out a search and prepare an expert document to be used as proof that the landlord is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a property lawyer in relation to devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing Halifax.

I today plan to offer on a house that appears to tick a lot of boxes, at a reasonable price which is making it all the more appealing. I have just been informed that it's a leasehold as opposed to freehold. I would have thought that there are issues buying a house with a leasehold title in Halifax. Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been appointed. Will my lawyers set out the risks of buying a leasehold house in Halifax ?

The majority of houses in Halifax are freehold and not leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area can assist with the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are buying in Halifax in which case you should be shopping around for a Halifax conveyancing practitioner and check that they have experience in dealing with leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the unexpired lease term. As a tenant you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions for example requiring the freeholder’spermission to carry out changes to the property. You may also be required to pay a contribution towards the upkeep of the communal areas where the house is part of an estate. Your conveyancer should report to you on the legal implications.

I am looking at a couple of flats in Halifax both have about forty five years left on the leases. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

There are no two ways about it. A leasehold apartment in Halifax is a wasting asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The closer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it adversely affects the value of the property. The majority of buyers and banks, leases with less than eighty years become less and less attractive. On a more positive note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the property 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 a residence 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 Halifax conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. More often than not it is possible to negotiate informally with the freeholder to extend 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 work for a reputable estate agent office in Halifax where we have experienced a number of flat sales put at risk as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given contradictory information from local Halifax conveyancing firms. Can you clarify whether the owner of a flat can instigate the lease extension process for the buyer?

Provided that the seller has owned the lease 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 buyer can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done prior to, or at the same time as completion of the sale.

An alternative approach is 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 advice for leasehold conveyancing in Halifax with the intention of saving time on the sale process?

• Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Halifax can be bypassed if you get in touch lawyers the minute you market your property and ask them to collate the leasehold documentation which will be required by the purchasers’ lawyers.
• Many landlords or Management Companies in Halifax charge for providing management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should find out the actual amount of the charges. The management pack sought on or before finding a buyer, thus reducing delays. 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 Halifax.
• If you have carried out any alterations to the property would they have required Landlord’s approval? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Halifax state that internal structural changes or installing wooden flooring require a licence issued by the Landlord approving such works. Where you fail to have the consents to hand do not communicate with the landlord without checking with your conveyancer in advance.
• If you are supposed to have a share in the Management Company, you should ensure that you are holding the original share certificate. Organising a duplicate share certificate is often a lengthy formality and delays many a Halifax conveyancing transaction. Where a new share is needed, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (where relevant) for this at the earliest opportunity.
• You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but you should verify this via your lawyers. A buyer’s conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the lease term is below 75 years. It is therefore important at an early stage that you consider whether the lease term for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

I own a studio flat in Halifax, conveyancing having been completed 2010. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Corresponding flats in Halifax with an extended lease are worth £233,000. The ground rent is £60 invoiced every year. The lease ends on 21st October 2077

With just 51 years left to run the likely cost is going to span between £33,300 and £38,400 plus professional fees.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed investigations. 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 clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action based on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.