Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only 72 years remaining on my flat in Helston. I now want to get lease extension but my landlord is can not be found. What options are available to me?

On the basis that 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 enable the lease to be granted an extra 90 years by the magistrate. You will be obliged to prove that you have made all reasonable attempts to locate the freeholder. In some cases an enquiry agent would be useful to conduct investigations and prepare an expert document to be accepted by the court as evidence that the freeholder can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a solicitor in relation to proving the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court covering Helston.

You should [be sent a copy of the lease|receive a copy of the lease]

Expecting to complete next month on a garden flat in Helston. Conveyancing solicitors have said that they are sending me a report next week. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Helston should include some of the following:

• You must be told what counts as a Nuisance in the lease
• You should have a good understanding of the insurance provisions
• Repair and maintenance of the flat
• The landlord’s rights to access the flat you be made aware that your landlord has rights of access and I know how much notice s/he must provide.
• The landlord’s obligations to repair and maintain the building. It is important that you know who is responsible for the repair and maintenance of every part of the building
• Responsibility for repairing the window frames
• What you can do if a neighbour breach a clause of their lease?

For a comprehensive list of information to be included in your report on your leasehold property in Helston please ask your conveyancer in advance of your conveyancing in Helston

I today plan to offer on a house that appears to be perfect, at a great figure which is making it more attractive. I have just found out that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are issues purchasing a house with a leasehold title in Helston. Conveyancing solicitors have are soon to be instructed. Will my lawyers set out the implications of buying a leasehold house in Helston ?

The majority of houses in Helston are freehold and not leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can assist with the conveyancing process. it is apparent that you are purchasing in Helston so you should seriously consider looking for a Helston conveyancing solicitor and check that they are used to 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 with the house. The lease comes with conditions such as requiring the landlord’sconsent to carry out alterations. It may be necessary to pay a maintenance charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the property is part of an estate. Your solicitor will advise you fully on all the issues.

I work for a long established estate agent office in Helston where we see a number of leasehold sales derailed as a result of short leases. I have received inconsistent advice from local Helston conveyancing solicitors. Please can you shed some light as to whether the vendor of a flat can commence the lease extension process for the buyer?

As long as the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is 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 at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

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.

We expect to complete our sale of a £ 200000 flat in Helston in just under a week. The management company has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and previous years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in Helston?

Helston conveyancing on leasehold apartments typically involves fees being raised by management companies :

• Answering conveyancing due diligence enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in Helston
• Copies of the building insurance and schedule
• 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 Helston leasehold property is £350. For Helston 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 obliged to provide answers.

I invested in buying a garden flat in Helston, conveyancing having been completed half a dozen years ago. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Similar flats in Helston with an extended lease are worth £183,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £60 yearly. The lease expires on 21st October 2076

With 50 years unexpired we estimate the premium for your lease extension to range between £32,300 and £37,400 as well as professional fees.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs without more comprehensive investigations. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other issues that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward placing reliance on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.