Looking forward to complete next month on a leasehold property in Brent Cross. Conveyancing solicitors have said that they will have a report out to me next week. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Brent Cross should include some of the following:

• The total extent of the demise. This will be the property itself but might incorporate a loft or basement if applicable.
• Will you be prohibited or prevented from having pets in the property?
• Does the lease prevent you from subletting the flat, or having a home office for business
• You should be told what counts as a Nuisance in the lease
• Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your premises and do you know what it means in practice?
• What options are open to you if a neighbour is in violation of a provision in their lease?
• What the implications are if you breach a clause of your lease?

I am employed by a reputable estate agency in Brent Cross where we see a few leasehold sales jeopardised due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received contradictory information from local Brent Cross conveyancing solicitors. Could you shed some light as to whether the vendor of a flat can start the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

Provided that the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the proposed purchaser need not have to wait 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, 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 purchaser.

Can you offer any advice when it comes to finding a Brent Cross conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

If you are instructing a conveyancer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Brent Cross conveyancing firm) it is essential that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We advise that you speak with two or three firms including non Brent Cross conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions might be useful:

• If the firm is not ALEP accredited then what is the reason?
• How many lease extensions has the firm completed in Brent Cross in the last twenty four months?

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Brent Cross from the perspective of speeding up the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Brent Cross can be avoided if you get in touch lawyers the minute your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information needed by the purchasers’ lawyers.
• Many freeholders or managing agents in Brent Cross levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should find out the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus reducing delays. The average time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most usual cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in Brent Cross.
• Some Brent Cross 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 obtain financial (bank) and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is able to meet 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 buyers or their solicitors.
• If there is a history of conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are settled before the property is marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where a dispute is unresolved. You may have to bite the bullet and pay any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal details of the dispute to the buyers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as over as opposed to ongoing.
• You may think that you are aware of the number of years left on your lease but it would be advisable double-check by asking your solicitors. A buyer’s conveyancer will be unlikely to recommend their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the remaining number of years is below 80 years. It is therefore important at an as soon as possible that you identify whether the lease requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale.

Following months of negotiations we simply can't agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Brent Cross. Can we issue an application to the Residential Property Tribunal Service?

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

An example of a Lease Extension case for a Brent Cross property is First Floor Flat 61 Wilberforce Road in March 2014. The premium payable was £10,130 and the case was remitted back to the Willesden County Court to effect the Vesting Order (Claim No 3W103100). This case related to 1 flat. The the number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 71 years.

What makes a Brent Cross lease defective?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Brent Cross. Most leases are individual and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain sections are erroneous. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• A provision to repair to or maintain elements of the property
• 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

You will have a problem when selling your property if you have a defective lease as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Halifax, The Mortgage Works, and Clydesdale all have express requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is problematic they may refuse to provide security, forcing the purchaser to pull out.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Brent Cross - Sample of Questions you should consider before Purchasing

Most Brent Cross leasehold flats will be liable to pay a service bill for maintenance of the block levied by the freeholder. Where you buy the flat you will have to pay this amount, usually periodically throughout the year. This can be anything from several hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for buildings with lifts and large communal grounds. There will also be a rentcharge to be met yearly, ordinarily this is not a large figure, say around £25-£75 but you should to enquire it because sometimes it could be many hundreds of pounds. You should be aware that where the lease has less than 80 years it will have adverse implications on the marketability of the flat. Check with your bank that they are happy with remaining years on the lease. Leases with fewer than 80 years remaining means that you will almost definitely have to extend the lease at some point and you need to have some idea of what this will be. Remember, in most cases you would be be obliged to have owned the residence for a couple of years before you are legally able to extend the lease.