There are only 68 years left on my lease in Little Bromwich. I now wish to extend my lease but my landlord is missing. What options are available to me?

On the basis that you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be extended by the magistrate. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have done all that could be expected to locate the landlord. For most situations a specialist may be helpful to carry out a search and to produce a report which can be accepted by the court as proof that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a property lawyer both on proving the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Little Bromwich.

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a two maisonettes in Little Bromwich both have approximately fifty years remaining on the leases. Will this present a problem?

There are no two ways about it. A leasehold flat in Little Bromwich is a deteriorating asset as a result of the shortening lease. The nearer the lease gets to its expiry date, the more it adversely affects the value of the premises. The majority of buyers and lenders, leases with under 75 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 Little Bromwich conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. A more straightforward and quicker method of extending would be to contact your landlord directly and sound him out on the prospect of extending the lease They may agree to a smaller lump sum and an increase in the ground rent, but to shorter extension terms in return. 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.

I've recently bought a leasehold flat in Little Bromwich. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before my ownership?

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. However, 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 ensure 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).

What are your top tips when it comes to choosing a Little Bromwich conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

If you are instructing a property lawyer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Little Bromwich conveyancing practice) it is essential that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We suggested that you make enquires with two or three firms including non Little Bromwich conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions might be useful:

• If the firm is not ALEP accredited then what is the reason?

If all goes to plan we aim to complete the disposal of our £250000 garden flat in Little Bromwich in 5 days. The landlords agents has quoted £360 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and 3 years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in Little Bromwich?

Little Bromwich conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes usually requires the buyer’s lawyer submitting enquiries for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is not legally bound to respond to these enquiries most will be willing to assist. They are entitled invoice a reasonable administration fee for answering enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average costs for the paperwork that you are referring to is £350, in some cases it is above £800. The administration charge invoiced by the landlord must be accompanied by a synopsis of entitlements and obligations in respect of administration charges, without which the invoice is technically not due. In reality you have no choice but to pay whatever is requested of you if you want to complete the sale of your home.

Little Bromwich Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Sample of Questions you should ask Prior to buying

It would be wise to find out as much as possible about the managing agents as they will either make your life much easier or uncomfortable. Being a leasehold owner you will be at the mercy of the managing agents from a financial perspective and when it comes to day to day matters like the cleanliness of the common parts. Enquire of prospective neighbours whether they are happy with them. On a final note, be sure you discover the dates that you are obliged pay the maintenance charge to the relevant party and specifically how they are spending the funds. What is the maintenance charge and ground rent on the flat? Please note that where the lease has less than eighty years it will impact the value of the flat. It is worth checking with your bank that they are happy with remaining years on the lease. A short lease means that you will almost definitely have to extend the lease at some point and you need to have some idea of how much this will be. For most Little Bromwichlease extensions you will be be obliged to have owned the residence for two years before you are eligible to carry out a lease extension.

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Lease Extensions in Little Bromwich