Recently asked questions relating to Alperton leasehold conveyancing
I have recently realised that I have 62 years remaining on my lease in Alperton. I now wish to get lease extension but my landlord is can not be found. What are my options?
If you qualify, 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 prove that you or your lawyers have used your best endeavours to track down the lessor. For most situations an enquiry agent should be useful to carry out a search and to produce an expert document to be accepted by the court as evidence that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a property lawyer in relation to devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Alperton.
I have just appointed agents to market my garden flat in Alperton.Conveyancing has not commenced but I have just received a quarterly service charge invoice – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?
The sensible thing to do is 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 management companies 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've found a house that appears to tick a lot of boxes, at a reasonable figure which is making it more attractive. I have since been informed that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are issues buying a house with a leasehold title in Alperton. Conveyancing solicitors have not yet been instructed. Will they explain the issues?
Most houses in Alperton are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can assist with the conveyancing process. We note that you are purchasing in Alperton so you should seriously consider looking for a Alperton conveyancing practitioner and check that they are used to advising on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. Being a tenant you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want to the property. The lease will likely included provisions such as requiring the landlord’spermission to carry out changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a service charge towards the maintenance of the communal areas where the house is located on an estate. Your lawyer will advise you fully on all the issues.
Last month I purchased a leasehold house in Alperton. Am I liable to pay 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. A critical element 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).
Having spent months of dialogue we simply can't agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Alperton. Does the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal have jurisdiction to calculate the appropriate figures?
Most definitely. We can put you in touch with a Alperton conveyancing firm who can help.
An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Alperton flat is 99 Connell Crescent in May 2013. the Tribunal held that the relevant sum for the purposes of the lease extension should be £72,566 to be paid by the leaseholder This case was in relation to 1 flat. The the number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 28.42 years.
In relation to leasehold conveyancing in Alperton what are the most frequent lease problems?
There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Alperton. Most leases are individual and drafting errors can sometimes mean that certain sections are wrong. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:
- Repairing obligations to or maintain elements of the building
- Insurance obligations
- Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
- Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage
A defective lease will likely cause problems when trying to sell a property primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Halifax, Skipton Building Society, and TSB all have very detailed requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to provide security, forcing the buyer to withdraw.
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