Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only 72 years left on my flat in Lake District. I now wish to get lease extension but my landlord is missing. What options are available to me?

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 for permission 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 prove that you or your lawyers have done all that could be expected to find the landlord. In some cases a specialist would be helpful to try and locate and to produce an expert document to be accepted by the court as proof that the landlord is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a property lawyer in relation to devolving into the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Lake District.

Looking forward to complete next month on a leasehold property in Lake District. Conveyancing lawyers assured me that they report fully within the next couple of days. What should I be looking out for?

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

• The length of the lease term You should be advised as what happens when the lease expires, and informed of the importance of the 80 year mark
• Does the lease prevent you from subletting the flat, or working from home
• 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
• What options are open to you if a neighbour is in violation of a provision in their lease?
• What the implications are if you breach a clause of your lease?

My wife and I purchased a leasehold house in Lake District. Conveyancing and National Westminster Bank mortgage are in place. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1995. The conveyancing practitioner in Lake District who previously acted has long since retired.Do I pay?

First contact HMLR 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 incur the fees of a Lake District conveyancing firm 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 freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a two flats in Lake District which have about 50 years remaining on the leases. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

There are plenty of short leases in Lake District. The lease is a right to use the premises for a prescribed time frame. As a lease gets shorter the value of the lease decreases and it becomes more expensive to extend the lease. This is why it is generally wise to increase the term of the lease. More often than not it is difficult to sell a property with a short lease as mortgage companies may be unwilling to lend money on properties of this type. Lease extension can be a difficult process. We advise that you get professional assistance from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this arena

I work for a reputable estate agency in Lake District where we have experienced a number of flat sales put at risk due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received conflicting advice from local Lake District conveyancing solicitors. Can you confirm whether the owner of a flat can initiate 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 start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

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.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Lake District - Sample of Questions you should ask before Purchasing

How much is the ground rent and service charge?