I only have Sixty One years remaining on my flat in Littleport. I now want to extend my lease 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 an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be granted an extra 90 years by the magistrate. 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 may be helpful to carry out a search 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 solicitor in relation to devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Littleport.

I today plan to offer on a house that appears to be perfect, at a great price which is making it more attractive. I have subsequently found out that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are issues purchasing a leasehold house in Littleport. Conveyancing solicitors have not yet been instructed. Will they explain the issues?

Most houses in Littleport are freehold and not leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer used to dealing with such properties who can help the conveyancing process. We note that you are purchasing in Littleport so you should seriously consider looking for a Littleport conveyancing practitioner and check that they have experience in dealing with leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the number of years remaining. Being a lessee you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions such as requiring the landlord’spermission to carry out changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a maintenance charge towards the upkeep of the estate where the property is part of an estate. Your solicitor will advise you fully on all the issues.

Last month I purchased a leasehold property in Littleport. Do I have any liability for service charges relating to a period prior to completion of my purchase?

Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner 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. A critical element 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).

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Littleport with the purpose of expediting the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Littleport can be reduced if you get in touch lawyers the minute you market your property and request that they start to collate the leasehold information needed by the buyers conveyancers.
• The majority freeholders or Management Companies in Littleport levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should discover the fee that they propose to charge. The management information can be applied for on or before finding 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 usual reason for frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Littleport.

Some Littleport leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. Any bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are able to meet the yearly 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 document. Organising a new share certificate can be a time consuming formality and frustrates many a Littleport home move. If a duplicate share is needed, do contact the company officers or managing agents (where relevant) for this sooner rather than later.

You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but it would be wise to double-check by asking your lawyers. A buyer’s lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to where the remaining number of years is under 80 years. It is therefore important at an as soon as possible that you consider whether the lease term requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

If all goes to plan we aim to complete our sale of a £175000 maisonette in Littleport in nine days. The landlords agents has quoted £300 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and 3 years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge an administration fee for a flat conveyance in Littleport?

Littleport conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes typically involves administration charges raised by management companies :

• Answering pre-contract enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in Littleport
• Supplying insurance information
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your solicitor will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Littleport leasehold premises is £350. For Littleport 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 required to provide the information.

Littleport Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Questions you should ask Prior to buying

What is the annual maintenance fee and ground rent? Best to be warned if a new roof is being put on or some other significant cost is due shortly that will be shared by the leasehold owners and will dramatically increase the the service costs or require a specific invoice. The answer will be useful as a) areas may cause problems for the building as the communal areas may start to deteriorate if maintenance remain unpaid b) if the leasehold owners have an issue with the running of the building you will want to have all the details

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Littleport