Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only Fifty years remaining on my lease in Hoole. I need to get lease extension but my landlord is can not be found. What should I do?

On the basis that you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be granted an extra 90 years by the Court. However, you will be required to prove that you have made all reasonable attempts to track down the lessor. For most situations an enquiry agent should be helpful to try and locate and to produce a report which can be accepted by the court as proof that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a property lawyer both on investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing Hoole.

Looking forward to complete next month on a leasehold property in Hoole. Conveyancing lawyers have said that they report fully on Monday. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Hoole should include some of the following:

• Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, landlord
• Whether your lease has a provision for a reserve fund?
• You should have a good understanding of the insurance provisions
• I don't know whether the lease allows me to alter or improve anything in the flat - you should know whether it applies to all alterations or just structural alteration, and whether consent is required
• 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

I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that appears to meet my requirements, at a reasonable figure which is making it more attractive. I have just discovered that the title is leasehold as opposed to freehold. I am assuming that there are issues purchasing a leasehold house in Hoole. Conveyancing advisers have not yet been appointed. Will my lawyers set out the implications of buying a leasehold house in Hoole ?

The majority of houses in Hoole are freehold rather than leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer used to dealing with such properties who can assist with the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are buying in Hoole so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Hoole conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they are used to advising on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the number of years remaining. Being 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 freeholder’spermission to conduct changes to the property. You may also be required to pay a contribution towards the maintenance of the estate where the house is located on an estate. Your lawyer should appraise you on the various issues.

Back In 2000, I bought a leasehold house in Hoole. Conveyancing and Norwich and Peterborough Building Society mortgage went though with no issue. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1998. The conveyancing practitioner in Hoole who previously acted has now retired.Any advice?

First make enquiries of the Land Registry to be sure that this person is in fact the new freeholder. You do not need to instruct a Hoole conveyancing practitioner to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. Rest assured that regardless, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

What makes a Hoole lease defective?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Hoole. All leases are unique and legal mistakes in the legal wording can result in certain clauses are missing. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• A provision to repair to or maintain elements of the premises
• Insurance obligations
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

You will have a problem when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Halifax, Norwich and Peterborough Building Society, and Platform Home Loans Ltd 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 is problematic they may refuse to grant the mortgage, forcing the buyer to withdraw.

Hoole Leasehold Conveyancing - Sample of Questions you should ask Prior to Purchasing

How much is the yearly service fee and ground rent? Plenty Hoole leasehold properties will be liable to pay a service charge for maintenance of the block set by the freeholder. Should you purchase the flat you will have to pay this liability, usually in instalments throughout the year. This could differ from a few hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for buildings with lifts and large communal grounds. There will also be a rentcharge for you to pay yearly, this is usually not a exorbitant figure, say around £50-£100 but you need to enquire it because occasionally it could be prohibitively expensive.