I have recently realised that I have Seventy years remaining on my flat in Hemel Hempstead. I now wish to get lease extension but my freeholder is absent. 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 an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be extended by the magistrate. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you have used your best endeavours to track down the freeholder. On the whole an enquiry agent would be helpful to try and locate and prepare an expert document which can be used as proof that the landlord can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer both on investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Hemel Hempstead.

Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my garden flat in Hemel Hempstead.Conveyancing has not commenced but I have just received a half-yearly maintenance charge invoice – what should I do?

The sensible thing to do is clear the invoice as normal because all ground rent and service charges will be apportioned on completion, so you will be reimbursed by the buyer for the period running from after the completion date to the next payment date. Most management companies will not acknowledge the buyer until the service charges have been paid and are up to date so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a couple of apartments in Hemel Hempstead which have about 50 years left on the leases. Will this present a problem?

There is no doubt about it. A leasehold flat in Hemel Hempstead is a deteriorating asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The nearer the lease gets to its expiry date, the more it reduces the salability of the property. For most purchasers and mortgage companies, leases with under eighty years become less and less marketable. 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 premises 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 premises 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 Hemel Hempstead 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 They may agree to a smaller lump sum and an increase in the ground rent, but to shorter extension terms in return. 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.

What advice can you give us when it comes to choosing a Hemel Hempstead conveyancing firm to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

If you are instructing a solicitor for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Hemel Hempstead conveyancing firm) it is imperative that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We suggested that you talk with several firms including non Hemel Hempstead conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions could be of use:

• What volume of lease extensions have they carried out in Hemel Hempstead in the last year?

We expect to complete our sale of a £300000 apartment in Hemel Hempstead in just under a week. The management company has quoted £348 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 Hemel Hempstead?

Hemel Hempstead conveyancing on leasehold flats often requires the buyer’s solicitor sending enquiries for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to address such questions the majority will be content to assist. They are entitled charge a reasonable administration fee for responding to questions or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average fee for the information that you are referring to is £350, in some situations it is above £800. The administration charge levied by the landlord must be sent together with a summary of rights and obligations in respect of administration charges, without which the invoice is not strictly payable. In reality one has no option but to pay whatever is requested of you should you wish to sell the property.

Hemel Hempstead Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Questions you should ask Prior to buying

This information is helpful as a) areas could cause problems for the block as the common areas may start to deteriorate if repairs are not paid for b) if the leasehold owners have a dispute with the managing agents you will need to have all the details If a Hemel Hempstead lease has less than 80 years it will impact the marketability of the apartment. It is worth checking with your mortgage company that they are willing to to proceed given the lease term. A short lease means that you will most likely have to extend the lease at some point and it is worth finding out how much this would cost. Remember, in most cases you would be be obliged to have owned the property for a couple of years before you are legally able to extend the lease. It is important to be aware whether changing the roof or some other major work is due shortly to be shared by the leasehold owners and could well materially impact the level of the maintenance charges or result in a specific payment.

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Lease Extensions in Hemel Hempstead