I have recently realised that I have Fifty years unexpired on my lease in Leven. I now wish to get lease extension but my freeholder is missing. What options are available to me?

On the basis that 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 mean that your lease can be extended by the magistrate. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you have made all reasonable attempts to track down the landlord. In some cases a specialist should be useful to try and locate and to produce an expert document to be used as evidence that the freeholder 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 Leven.

I have just started marketing my ground floor apartment in Leven.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just had a yearly service charge invoice – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

The sensible thing to do is discharge 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 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. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

I am attracted to a couple of flats in Leven both have approximately fifty years remaining on the leases. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

There is no doubt about it. A leasehold apartment in Leven is a deteriorating asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The closer the lease gets to its expiry date, the more it adversely affects the marketability of the property. The majority of purchasers and lenders, leases with less than eighty years become less and less marketable. On a more upbeat note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the property for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of a residence with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Leven conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. More often than not it is possible to negotiate informally with the freeholder to extend the lease You may find he or she is happy to negotiate informally and willing to consider your offer straight off, without having to involve anyone else. This will save you time and money and it could help you reach a lower price on the lease. You need to ensure that any new terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.

Can you offer any advice when it comes to finding a Leven conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

When appointing a conveyancer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Leven conveyancing practice) it is most important that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We advise that you talk with several firms including non Leven conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be of use:

• How experienced is the firm with lease extension legislation?

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Leven from the perspective of speeding up the sale process?

• Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Leven can be reduced where you get in touch lawyers as soon as you market your property and request that they start to collate the leasehold information which will be required by the purchasers’ lawyers.
• Many landlords or managing agents in Leven charge for providing management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should find out the actual amount of the charges. The management pack sought as soon as you have a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The typical amount of time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most frequent reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Leven.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Leven - Sample of Queries before buying

Are any of leasehold owners in dispute over their service charge payments? It would be wise to discover as much as possible regarding the managing agents as they will affect your use and enjoyment of the property. Being a leasehold owner you are frequently in the clutches of the managing agents from a financial perspective and when it comes to daily issues like the cleanliness of the communal areas. Enquire of other tenants if they are happy with them. Finally, find out the dates that the service fees are due to the managing agents and specifically what you get for your money. Make sure you discover if there is anything that is prohibited in the lease. For example it is fairly common in Leven leases that pets are not permitted in certain buildings in Leven. If you like the apartmentin Leven yet your dog can’t move with you then you will be presented with a hard compromise.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Leven