I've found a house that appears to be perfect, at a reasonable price which is making it all the more appealing. I have just 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 Blackfen. Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been appointed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Blackfen 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 buying in Blackfen so you should seriously consider looking for a Blackfen conveyancing practitioner and be sure that they are used to dealing with leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the unexpired lease term. Being a leaseholder you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions such as obtaining the freeholder’spermission to conduct 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 solicitor will report to you on the legal implications.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold flat in Blackfen. Conveyancing and National Westminster Bank mortgage organised. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1994. The conveyancing practitioner in Blackfen who previously acted has long since retired.What should I do?

The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to make sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is indeed the new freeholder. There is no need to incur the fees of a Blackfen conveyancing firm to do this as it can be done on-line for a few pound. You should note that in any event, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

I am attracted to a couple of flats in Blackfen which have approximately forty five years left on the leases. Do I need to be concerned?

There is no doubt about it. A leasehold apartment in Blackfen is a wasting asset as a result of the shortening lease. The closer the lease gets to its expiry date, the more it adversely affects the value of the property. For most buyers and lenders, leases with under eighty years become less and less attractive. On a more positive note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the property for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of a residence with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Blackfen conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. More often than not it is possible to negotiate informally with the freeholder to extend the lease They may agree to a smaller lump sum and an increase in the ground rent, but to shorter extension terms in return. You need to ensure that any new terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Blackfen from the perspective of expediting the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Blackfen can be avoided if you appoint lawyers as soon as you market your property and request that they start to collate the leasehold information needed by the buyers representatives.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s permission? Have you, for example laid down wooden flooring? Blackfen leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or laying down wooden flooring require a licence from the Landlord approving such alterations. If you dont have the approvals to hand you should not communicate with the landlord without checking with your lawyer in the first instance.
• A minority of Blackfen leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. The 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 service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their solicitors.
• If you have the benefit of shareholding in the freehold, you should make sure that you have the original share document. Organising a re-issued share certificate is often a time consuming formality and frustrates many a Blackfen conveyancing transaction. If a new share is necessary, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (if applicable) for this at the earliest opportunity.
• You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but it would be advisable double-check via your lawyers. A buyer’s conveyancer will be unlikely to recommend their client to to exchange contracts if the lease term is under 75 years. It is therefore essential at an as soon as possible that you identify whether the lease term requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

Following years of correspondence we cannot agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Blackfen. Does the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal have jurisdiction to calculate the appropriate figures?

You certainly can. We are happy to put you in touch with a Blackfen conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a Blackfen flat is 103a Footscray Road in January 2014. The tribunal determines that the premium payable for the extended lease should be £34,500 according to the expert witness valuation calculation This case related to 1 flat.

What makes a Blackfen lease problematic?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Blackfen. Most leases is drafted differently and drafting errors can sometimes mean that certain provisions are missing. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain elements of the building
• A duty to insure the building
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

A defective lease can cause problems when trying to sell a property as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Yorkshire Building Society, The Mortgage Works, and Barclays Direct all have very detailed requirements 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, obliging the buyer to withdraw.

I inherited a 1st floor flat in Blackfen, conveyancing having been completed 8 years ago. How much will my lease extension cost? Equivalent flats in Blackfen with a long lease are worth £214,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 yearly. The lease expires on 21st October 2082

With 56 years left to run the likely cost is going to span between £27,600 and £31,800 plus legals.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to provide a more accurate figure without more detailed investigations. Do not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional issues that need to be considered and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward placing reliance on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.