Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only Sixty One years left on my flat in Horwich. I now want to extend my lease but my freeholder 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 mean that your lease can be granted an extra 90 years by the Court. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have done all that could be expected to find the lessor. For most situations a specialist would be helpful to try and locate and to produce an expert document to be used as proof that the freeholder can not be located. 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 covering Horwich.

Planning to complete next month on a ground floor flat in Horwich. Conveyancing lawyers have said that they will have a report out to me within the next couple of days. What should I be looking out for?

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

• The physical extent of the demise. This will be the flat itself but might include a loft or basement if appropriate.

Defining your legal entitlements in relation to common areas in the building.For instance, does the lease provide for a right of way over an accessway or hallways?

Do you need to have carpet in the flat or are you allowed wood flooring?

Changes to the flat (alterations and additions)

Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your property and do you know what it means in practice?

What you can do if a neighbour breach a clause of their lease?

What the implications are if you breach a clause of your lease? For details of the information to be included in your report on your leasehold property in Horwich please enquire of your solicitor in ahead of your conveyancing in Horwich

I have just appointed agents to market my garden apartment in Horwich.Conveyancing has not commenced but I have just had a half-yearly maintenance charge demand – what should I do?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should pay the service charge 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. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

I own a leasehold flat in Horwich. Conveyancing and Coventry Building Society mortgage organised. 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 1991. The conveyancing solicitor in Horwich who acted for me is not around.Any advice?

The first thing you should do is make enquiries of the Land Registry to be sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. There is no need to instruct a Horwich conveyancing practitioner 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 landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

If all goes to plan we aim to complete our sale of a £200000 apartment in Horwich in just under a week. The managing agents has quoted £324 for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and previous years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge an administration fee for a leasehold conveyance in Horwich?

Horwich conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes ordinarily involves fees being levied by freeholders :

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

Your lawyer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Horwich leasehold premises is £350. For Horwich 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 supply the information.

Horwich Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Questions you should ask before buying

Please tell me if there are any major works in the near future that will add a premium to the service charges? If a Horwich lease has less than 80 years it will impact the marketability of the property. It is worth checking with your mortgage company that they are happy with residual term of the lease. Leases with less than 80 years remaining means that you will most likely require a lease extension sooner rather than later and you need to have some idea of what this would cost. For most Horwichlease extensions you will be be obliged to have been the owner of the premises for a couple of years in order to be eligible to exercise a lease extension. How much is the service charge and ground rent on the flat?

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Horwich