I have recently realised that I have 72 years remaining on my flat in Hyde Park. I need to get lease extension but my landlord is absent. What are my options?

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 enable the lease to be lengthened by the Court. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you have made all reasonable attempts to locate the landlord. For most situations an enquiry agent should be helpful to try and locate and to produce a report which can be used as evidence that the landlord is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer both on investigating the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Hyde Park.

Last month I purchased a leasehold flat in Hyde Park. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to completion of my purchase?

In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. Strange as it may seem, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to be sure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.

If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).

I am a negotiator for a long established estate agent office in Hyde Park where we have witnessed a few leasehold sales jeopardised due to short leases. I have received inconsistent advice from local Hyde Park conveyancing solicitors. Can you clarify whether the vendor of a flat can commence 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 commence 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 has to be done prior to, or at the same time as completion of the sale.

Alternatively, it may be possible 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.

What advice can you give us when it comes to appointing a Hyde Park conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a property lawyer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Hyde Park conveyancing practice) it is most important that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We suggested that you make enquires with two or three firms including non Hyde Park conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions might be useful:

• How many lease extensions has the firm conducted in Hyde Park in the last twenty four months?
• What are the costs for lease extension work?

If all goes to plan we aim to complete the disposal of our £ 375000 flat in Hyde Park in nine days. The management company has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and 3 years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge an administration fee for a flat conveyance in Hyde Park?

Hyde Park conveyancing on leasehold flats normally necessitates the purchaser’s conveyancer submitting questions for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to respond to such questions most will be willing to assist. They may charge a reasonable charge for answering questions or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average costs for the information that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some cases it is in excess of £800. The management information fee levied by the landlord must be accompanied by a summary of rights and obligations in respect of administration fees, without which the invoice is not strictly payable. Reality however dictates that one has no choice but to pay whatever is demanded should you wish to complete the sale of your home.

Hyde Park Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Queries before Purchasing

In the main the outlay for major works tend not to be included within maintenance charges, although there some managing agents in Hyde Park ask leaseholders to pay into a sinking fund and this is used to offset against major works.