I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that appears to meet my requirements, at a reasonable price which is making it more attractive. I have just been informed that the title is leasehold as opposed to freehold. I would have thought that there are particular concerns buying a house with a leasehold title in Langley. Conveyancing advisers have not yet been instructed. Will my lawyers set out the implications of buying a leasehold house in Langley ?

The majority of houses in Langley are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local conveyancer used to dealing with such properties who can help the conveyancing process. We note that you are purchasing in Langley so you should seriously consider looking for a Langley conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they have experience in advising on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. Being a leaseholder you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions such as requiring the freeholder’sconsent to conduct changes to the property. You may also be required to pay a maintenance charge towards the maintenance of the communal areas where the house is located on an estate. Your conveyancer should report to you on the legal implications.

I am attracted to a couple of flats in Langley which have approximately forty five years left on the leases. Do I need to be concerned?

A lease is a right to use the premises for a period of time. As a lease shortens the marketability of the lease deteriorate and it becomes more costly to acquire a lease extension. This is why it is generally wise to extend the lease term. More often than not it is difficult to sell a property with a short lease as mortgage lenders less inclined to grant a loan on properties of this type. Lease extension can be a difficult process. We recommend you seek professional help from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this area

I've recently bought a leasehold property in Langley. Do I have any liability for 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. 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 am a negotiator for a busy estate agent office in Langley where we see a number of flat sales put at risk as a result of short leases. I have received inconsistent advice from local Langley conveyancing firms. Can you clarify whether the vendor of a flat can start the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

As long as the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the proposed purchaser can avoid having to wait 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed before, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

An alternative approach is to agree the lease extension with the freeholder 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 purchaser.

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Langley from the perspective of expediting the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Langley can be bypassed where you instruct lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to collate the leasehold documentation needed by the purchasers’ conveyancers.
• The majority freeholders or Management Companies in Langley charge for providing management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should discover the actual amount of the charges. The management pack sought as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most common reason for frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Langley.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s approval? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Most leases in Langley state that internal structural changes or laying down wooden flooring necessitate a licence from the Landlord acquiescing to such works. Where you dont have the approvals to hand you should not contact the landlord without checking with your conveyancer in advance.
• A minority of Langley leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are financially capable of paying the annual service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their lawyers.
• If you have the benefit of shareholding in the freehold, you should ensure that you have the original share certificate. Arranging a duplicate share certificate can be a lengthy process and frustrates many a Langley home move. If a new share certificate is necessary, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (if relevant) for this sooner rather than later.

I am the proprietor of a garden flat in Langley. In the absence of agreement between myself and the freeholder, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal determine the sum payable for a lease extension?

Most certainly. We can put you in touch with a Langley conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement case for a Langley premises is 164 Nestles Avenue in October 2013. The tribunal agreed with the proposed price of £20,158 for the freehold and determined that that sum is the amount to be paid into court This case related to 2 flats. The remaining number of years on the lease was 69 years.

I own a studio flat in Langley, conveyancing formalities finalised 1998. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Corresponding flats in Langley with a long lease are worth £220,000. The ground rent is £55 invoiced every year. The lease runs out on 21st October 2094

With 68 years remaining on your lease we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £11,400 and £13,200 as well as legals.

The figure above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to advice on a more accurate figure in the absence of comprehensive investigations. You should not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt other issues that need to be taken into account and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward based on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.