Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only 72 years unexpired on my flat in Hamworthy. I am keen to extend my lease but my freeholder is can not be found. What should I do?

If you qualify, 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 demonstrate that you or your lawyers have used your best endeavours to find the lessor. For most situations a specialist may be useful to try and locate and to produce an expert document to be accepted by the court as proof that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer both on devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing Hamworthy.

I own a leasehold house in Hamworthy. Conveyancing and Barclays Direct mortgage are in place. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1995. The conveyancing solicitor in Hamworthy who previously acted has long since retired.Any advice?

First make enquiries of HMLR to make sure that this person is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. You do not need to instruct a Hamworthy conveyancing solicitor to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for a few pound. You should note that in any event, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

I am attracted to a two flats in Hamworthy both have approximately 50 years unexpired on the leases. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

A lease is a right to use the property for a prescribed time frame. As a lease gets shorter the marketability of the lease deteriorate and results in it becoming more expensive to extend the lease. For this reason it is advisable to extend the lease term. It is often difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease as mortgage lenders may be reluctant to lend money on properties of this type. Lease extension can be a protracted process. We advise that you get professional assistance from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this field

I've recently bought a leasehold house in Hamworthy. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

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 be sure 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).

What makes a Hamworthy lease defective?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Hamworthy. All leases is drafted differently and legal mistakes in the legal wording can result in certain provisions are not included. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the building
• Insurance obligations
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

A defective lease will likely cause issues when trying to sell a property primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Santander, Bank of Scotland, and Alliance & Leicester 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 does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to provide security, obliging the buyer to withdraw.

I inherited a 1 bedroom flat in Hamworthy, conveyancing having been completed 3 years ago. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Equivalent properties in Hamworthy with over 90 years remaining are worth £251,000. The ground rent is £45 invoiced every year. The lease ceases on 21st October 2085

With only 62 years remaining on your lease we estimate the premium for your lease extension to span between £19,000 and £22,000 plus legals.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to provide the actual costs without more detailed investigations. Do not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional issues that need to be considered and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action placing reliance on this information without first getting professional advice.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Hamworthy