I have recently realised that I have 68 years unexpired on my lease in Leigh On Sea. I am keen to get lease extension but my freeholder is can not be found. What options are available to me?

If you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be granted an extra 90 years by the Court. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have used your best endeavours to find the landlord. On the whole a specialist should be useful to carry out a search and to produce an expert document which can be used as evidence that the landlord can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a property lawyer in relation to investigating the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Leigh On Sea.

I have just appointed agents to market my garden flat in Leigh On Sea.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just received a quarterly service charge invoice – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

It best that you clear the invoice 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 managing agents 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 today plan to offer on a house that seems to meet my requirements, at a reasonable figure which is making it more attractive. I have subsequently been informed that the title is leasehold as opposed to freehold. I am assuming that there are issues buying a house with a leasehold title in Leigh On Sea. Conveyancing solicitors have are about to be appointed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Leigh On Sea are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local conveyancer used to dealing with such properties who can assist with the conveyancing process. We note that you are buying in Leigh On Sea in which case you should be shopping around for a Leigh On Sea conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they are used to advising on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the unexpired lease term. As a lessee you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions for example requiring the freeholder’spermission to conduct changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a maintenance charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the house is located on an estate. Your solicitor will advise you fully on all the issues.

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Leigh On Sea from the point of view of saving time on the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Leigh On Sea can be avoided where you appoint lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and ask them to collate the leasehold information needed by the buyers lawyers.
• If you have carried out any alterations to the premises would they have required Landlord’s consent? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Leigh On Sea leases often stipulate that internal structural changes or installing wooden flooring necessitate a licence issued by the Landlord consenting to such works. Where you dont have the consents in place do not contact the landlord without contacting your lawyer in the first instance.
• If there is a history of any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved prior to the flat being marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be concerned about purchasing a property where there is a current dispute. You may need to swallow your pride and pay any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to reveal the dispute as over as opposed to unsettled.
• If you are supposed to have a share in the Management Company, you should ensure that you are holding the original share certificate. Arranging a replacement share certificate can be a time consuming formality and slows down many a Leigh On Sea home move. Where a reissued share certificate is required, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (where applicable) for this as soon as possible.
• You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but it would be wise to verify this by asking your conveyancers. A buyer’s lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to where the lease term is less than 80 years. It is therefore important at an early stage that you identify whether the lease for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

We expect to complete the sale of our £ 475000 apartment in Leigh On Sea on Tuesday in a week. The landlords agents has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and 3 years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Leigh On Sea?

Leigh On Sea conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes nine out of ten times involves fees being invoiced by management companies :

• Addressing conveyancing due diligence enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in Leigh On Sea
• 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 Leigh On Sea leasehold premises is £350. For Leigh On Sea 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 answers.

Leigh On Sea Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Queries Prior to Purchasing

The answer will be helpful as a) areas can result in problems for the block as the common areas may start to deteriorate if services are not paid for b) if the leaseholders have an issue with the running of the building you will want to have full disclosure Best to be warned whether changing the roof or some other significant cost is pending that will be shared by the tenants and could well dramatically increase the the maintenance fees or require a specific invoice.