I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Hartford. Before diving in I would like to find out the unexpired term of the lease.

If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and almost all are in Hartford - then the leasehold title will always include the short particulars of the lease, namely the date; the term; and the original parties. From a conveyancing perspective such details then enable any prospective buyer and lender to confirm that any lease they are looking at is the one relevant to that title.For any other purpose, such as confirming how long the term was granted for and calculating what is left, then the register should be sufficient on it's own.

I want to rent out my leasehold flat in Hartford. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask him. Do I need to ask my freeholder for permission?

A small minority of properties in Hartford do contain a provision to say that subletting is only permitted with prior consent from the landlord. The landlord cannot unreasonably withhold but, in such cases, they would need to review references. Experience suggests that problems are usually caused by unsatisfactory tenants rather than owner-occupiers and for that reason you can expect the freeholder to take up the references and consider them carefully before granting permission.

Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only 72 years remaining on my lease in Hartford. I am keen to get lease extension but my landlord is absent. What options are available to me?

If 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 granted an extra 90 years by the magistrate. However, you will be required to prove that you have made all reasonable attempts to find the landlord. In some cases an enquiry agent should be helpful to carry out a search and prepare an expert document to be accepted by the court as evidence that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a property lawyer in relation to investigating the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court covering Hartford.

I am employed by a busy estate agency in Hartford where we have witnessed a few leasehold sales put at risk as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Hartford conveyancing firms. Can you confirm whether the seller of a flat can start the lease extension formalities 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 kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the buyer need not have to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.

Alternatively, it may be possible 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.

All being well we will complete our sale of a £350000 garden flat in Hartford on Thursday in a week. The landlords agents has quoted £336 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and 3 years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in Hartford?

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

• Completing pre-contract enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in Hartford
• Supplying insurance information
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your conveyancer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Hartford leasehold property is £350. For Hartford 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.

I bought a 1st floor flat in Hartford, conveyancing formalities finalised 10 years ago. Can you shed any light on how much the price could be for a 90 year extension to my lease? Equivalent properties in Hartford with over 90 years remaining are worth £238,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 invoiced annually. The lease expires on 21st October 2083

With only 58 years remaining on your lease we estimate the price of your lease extension to range between £22,800 and £26,400 plus professional fees.

The figure that we have given is 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 tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other concerns that need to be considered and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not take any other action based on this information without first getting professional advice.

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Lease Extensions in Hartford