I have just appointed agents to market my ground floor apartment in Barnsbury.Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon but I have just had a yearly service charge invoice – Do I pay up?

The sensible thing to do is pay 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 unless 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 apartments in Barnsbury both have about forty five years left on the leases. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

A lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the premises for a period of time. As a lease shortens the saleability of the lease reduces and it becomes more expensive to acquire a lease extension. For this reason it is often a good idea to extend the lease term. It is often difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease as mortgage companies less inclined to grant a loan on such properties. Lease extension can be a protracted process. We recommend you seek professional assistance from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this arena

What advice can you give us when it comes to appointing a Barnsbury conveyancing firm to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

If you are instructing a conveyancer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Barnsbury conveyancing practice) it is imperative that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We advise that you make enquires with several firms including non Barnsbury conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions could be useful:

• What volume of lease extensions has the firm completed in Barnsbury in the last 12 months?
• Can they put you in touch with client in Barnsbury who can give a testimonial?

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Barnsbury with the purpose of saving time on the sale process?

• Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Barnsbury can be reduced where you get in touch lawyers as soon as you market your property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information needed by the purchasers’ solicitors.
• Many freeholders or managing agents in Barnsbury 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 usual reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Barnsbury.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s permission? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Barnsbury leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or addition of wooden flooring require a licence issued by the Landlord consenting to such works. Should you dont have the consents to hand do not contact the landlord without checking with your solicitor in advance.
• A minority of Barnsbury leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this is the case, it would be prudent to notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is financially capable of paying the annual 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 service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their lawyers.
• You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but you should verify this via your solicitors. A purchaser's lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the remaining number of years is under 75 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 premises on the market for sale.

All being well we will complete our sale of a £ 325000 apartment in Barnsbury in 10 days. The freeholder has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and previous years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge an administration fee for a flat conveyance in Barnsbury?

Barnsbury conveyancing on leasehold flats normally requires the purchaser’s solicitor sending questions for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to address such questions the majority will be content to assist. They are at liberty levy a reasonable charge for answering enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average fee for the information that you are referring to is £350, in some transactions it exceeds £800. The administration charge demanded by the landlord must be accompanied by a summary of entitlements and obligations in relation to administration charges, otherwise the invoice is not strictly payable. Reality however dictates that you have little choice but to pay whatever is demanded if you want to complete the sale of your home.

I own a a ground floor purpose built flat in Barnsbury. Given that I can not reach agreement with the landlord, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal determine the amount due for the purchase of the freehold?

Most definitely. We are happy to put you in touch with a Barnsbury conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension case for a Barnsbury premises is Flat 120, Clare Court Judd Street in August 2013. the Tribunal held that the premium to be paid for the extension of the lease should be £64,650 This case was in relation to 1 flat. The the number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 62.79 years.

I invested in buying a 1 bedroom flat in Barnsbury, conveyancing having been completed half a dozen years ago. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Comparable properties in Barnsbury with a long lease are worth £259,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £60 charged once a year. The lease finishes on 21st October 2094

With just 68 years unexpired we estimate the price of your lease extension to range between £12,400 and £14,200 as well as professional fees.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs without more detailed investigations. Do not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt additional issues that need to be taken into account and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action placing reliance on this information before getting professional advice.