Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only 62 years unexpired on my flat in Beddington. I am keen to get lease extension but my landlord is can not be found. 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 submit an application to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be granted an extra 90 years by the magistrate. However, you will be required to prove that you or your lawyers have made all reasonable attempts to locate the landlord. For most situations a specialist should be useful to conduct investigations and prepare an expert document which can be used as evidence that the landlord can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer both on proving the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Beddington.

I today plan to offer on a house that appears to meet my requirements, at a reasonable price which is making it all the more appealing. I have subsequently discovered that the title is leasehold as opposed to freehold. I would have thought that there are issues buying a house with a leasehold title in Beddington. Conveyancing advisers have are about to be appointed. Will they explain the issues?

Most houses in Beddington are freehold and not leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local solicitor used to dealing with such properties who can assist with the conveyancing process. We note that you are buying in Beddington so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Beddington conveyancing solicitor 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. As a leaseholder you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want with the house. The lease comes with conditions such as requiring the freeholder’spermission to conduct 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 lawyer will appraise you on the various issues.

I am employed by a busy estate agent office in Beddington where we have experienced a number of flat sales derailed due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received contradictory information from local Beddington conveyancing solicitors. Could you clarify whether the vendor of a flat can initiate the lease extension process for the buyer?

As long as the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the buyer can avoid having to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed before, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

An alternative approach is to agree the lease extension with the freeholder either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the buyer.

Completion in due on the sale of our £300000 maisonette in Beddington next week. The freeholder has quoted £336 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and 3 years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge an administration fee for a leasehold conveyance in Beddington?

Beddington conveyancing on leasehold flats normally involves the buyer’s conveyancer sending enquiries for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is not legally bound to respond to such questions the majority will be willing to do so. They are at liberty levy a reasonable administration fee for answering questions or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average costs for the paperwork that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some situations it exceeds £800. The administration charge demanded by the landlord must be accompanied by a summary of rights and obligations in relation to administration charges, without which the invoice is technically not due. Reality however dictates that one has no choice but to pay whatever is requested of you should you wish to sell the property.

I have given up trying to purchase the freehold in Beddington. Can this matter be resolved via the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal?

in cases where there is a missing freeholder or if there is disagreement about what the lease extension should cost, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 it is possible to make an application to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal to judgment on the price.

An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a Beddington premises is Ground Floor Flat 14 Lodge Road in October 2013. the tribunal held that the price payable for the acquisition of the extended lease of the property should be £12,590 .00 This case was in relation to 1 flat. The remaining number of years on the lease was 69.46 years.

What are the frequently found problems that you encounter in leases for Beddington properties?

Leasehold conveyancing in Beddington is not unique. All leases are unique and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain sections are erroneous. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the property
• Insurance obligations
• A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

You will have difficulties when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Birmingham Midshires, Coventry Building Society, and Alliance & Leicester all have very detailed conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is problematic they may refuse to provide security, forcing the purchaser to pull out.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Beddington