I have recently realised that I have Sixty One years left on my flat in Bayswater. I am keen to extend my lease but my landlord is absent. What options are available to me?

If 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 enable the lease to be lengthened by the Court. You will be obliged to prove that you or your lawyers have done all that could be expected to track down the lessor. In some cases an enquiry agent may be helpful to conduct investigations and prepare an expert document which can be accepted by the court as proof that the landlord can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a property lawyer in relation to proving the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing Bayswater.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold house in Bayswater. Conveyancing and Britannia mortgage went though with no issue. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1992. The conveyancing solicitor in Bayswater who previously acted has now retired.What should I do?

First contact the Land Registry to be sure that this person is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. You do not need to instruct a Bayswater conveyancing solicitor to do this as it can be done on-line for £3. You should note that regardless, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

Last month I purchased a leasehold property in Bayswater. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

In a situation 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).

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

If you are instructing a solicitor for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Bayswater conveyancing practice) it is essential that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We suggested that you talk with several firms including non Bayswater conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be useful:

• How experienced is the practice with lease extension legislation?
• What volume of lease extensions have they conducted in Bayswater in the last twenty four months?

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Bayswater with the purpose of speeding up the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Bayswater can be reduced if you appoint lawyers the minute you market your property and request that they start to collate the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers lawyers.
• If you have carried out any alterations to the property would they have required Landlord’s permission? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Bayswater leases often stipulate that internal structural changes or installing wooden flooring calls for a licence issued by the Landlord approving such changes. If you fail to have the approvals in place you should not contact the landlord without contacting your conveyancer in the first instance.
• Some Bayswater leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are financially capable of paying 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 solicitors.
• If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should ensure that you are holding the original share certificate. Obtaining a duplicate share certificate can be a time consuming formality and frustrates many a Bayswater home move. Where a new share certificate is necessary, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (where relevant) for this as soon as possible.
• You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be advisable double-check by asking your conveyancers. A purchaser's conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the remaining number of years is below 80 years. It is therefore essential at an early stage that you identify whether the lease requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

I am the registered owner of a second floor flat in Bayswater. In the absence of agreement between myself and the landlord, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal determine the sum due for the purchase of the freehold?

Absolutely. We are happy to put you in touch with a Bayswater conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Bayswater flat is 93 Oakwood Court in June 2010. the LVT determined that the premium to be paid for the new lease was £492,083, This case affected 1 flat. The unexpired term was 37.79 years.

I inherited a 1 bedroom flat in Bayswater, conveyancing having been completed 7 years ago. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Comparable properties in Bayswater with over 90 years remaining are worth £243,000. The ground rent is £55 charged once a year. The lease ceases on 21st October 2106

You have 80 years unexpired the likely cost is going to range between £9,500 and £11,000 as well as costs.

The figure above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to provide a more accurate figure in the absence of comprehensive due diligence. You should not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be additional concerns that need to be taken into account and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action based on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.