Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Kingsland. Before diving in I would like to find out the remaining lease term.

Assuming the lease is registered - and most are in Kingsland - then the leasehold title will always include the basic details of the lease, namely the date; the term; and the original parties. From a conveyancing perspective such details then enable any prospective buyer and lender to confirm that any lease they are looking at is the one relevant to that title.For any other purpose, such as confirming how long the term was granted for and calculating what is left, then the register should be sufficient on it's own.

There are only Fifty years left on my flat in Kingsland. I need to get lease extension but my landlord is missing. What should I do?

If you meet the appropriate requirements, 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. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have used your best endeavours to locate the freeholder. In some cases a specialist should be helpful to conduct investigations and prepare an expert document to be used as evidence that the landlord is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer both on proving the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court covering Kingsland.

I have just started marketing my basement flat in Kingsland.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just had a quarterly maintenance charge invoice – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should clear 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 unless 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 am looking at a couple of maisonettes in Kingsland which have about forty five years remaining on the lease term. should I be concerned?

There are plenty of short leases in Kingsland. The lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the premises for a prescribed time frame. As the lease shortens the marketability of the lease decreases and results in it becoming more costly to acquire a lease extension. For this reason it is often a good idea to increase the term of the lease. More often than not it is difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease because mortgage lenders less inclined to grant a loan on properties of this type. Lease enfranchisement can be a difficult process. We advise that you seek professional help from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this arena

Last month I purchased a leasehold flat in Kingsland. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before my ownership?

In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner 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. It is an essential part 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 own a basement flat in Kingsland. In the absence of agreement between myself and the landlord, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal determine the amount payable for the purchase of the freehold?

in cases where there is a absentee landlord or where there is disagreement about what the lease extension should cost, under the relevant statutes you can apply to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) to judgment on the price.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Kingsland flat is 5C Stoke Newington Road in April 2010. the Tribunal therefore concludes that the premium to be paid for the extended lease is £700.00 This case was in relation to 1 flat. The unexpired term was 80.5 years.

I am the registered owner of a 1 bedroom flat in Kingsland, conveyancing was carried out 2005. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Comparable flats in Kingsland with a long lease are worth £217,000. The ground rent is £65 levied per year. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2105

You have 79 years unexpired we estimate the premium for your lease extension to be between £9,500 and £11,000 plus legals.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to advice on the actual costs without more comprehensive investigations. Do not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional issues that need to be taken into account and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward placing reliance on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.