Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only Sixty One years unexpired on my flat in Brent Park. I now want to get lease extension but my freeholder is absent. What should I do?

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 for permission 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 made all reasonable attempts to locate the lessor. In some cases a specialist may be helpful to try and locate and to produce an expert document which can be accepted by the court as evidence that the landlord is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a property lawyer both on proving the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Brent Park.

Last month I purchased a leasehold house in Brent Park. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before my ownership?

Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee 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. It is an essential part of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to be sure 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 choosing a Brent Park conveyancing firm to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

When appointing a solicitor for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Brent Park conveyancing practice) it is imperative that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We recommend that you speak with several firms including non Brent Park conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be helpful:

• How familiar is the practice with lease extension legislation?
• What are the charges for lease extension conveyancing?

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Brent Park from the perspective of speeding up the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Brent Park can be reduced if you appoint lawyers as soon as you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation needed by the purchasers’ representatives.
• The majority landlords or Management Companies in Brent Park levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should find out the actual amount of the charges. The management information sought as soon as you have a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The typical amount of time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most usual cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in Brent Park.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s permission? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Brent Park state that internal structural alterations or addition of wooden flooring require a licence issued by the Landlord approving such alterations. Where you fail to have the paperwork in place do not communicate with the landlord without checking with your conveyancer first.
• A minority of Brent Park leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this is the case, you should 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 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 lawyers.
• You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but you should double-check by asking your conveyancers. A purchaser's conveyancer 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 essential at an as soon as possible that you identify whether the lease term for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

After years of dialogue we cannot agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Brent Park. Can we issue an application to the Residential Property Tribunal Service?

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

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement case for a Brent Park property is 7 Craven Park in June 2009. The tribunal considered it unnecessary to value the garage as an independent investment or to value each flat separately, providing that the marriage value calculation uses only the participating flats. Accordingly, the price determined by the Tribunal was £41,140 This case affected 5 flats. The unexpired lease term was 73.14 years.

What makes a Brent Park lease defective?

Leasehold conveyancing in Brent Park is not unique. Most leases are individual 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 elements of the premises
• 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

A defective lease will likely cause issues when trying to sell a property as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Barclays , Skipton Building Society, and Clydesdale 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 does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to grant the mortgage, obliging the purchaser to withdraw.

Brent Park Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Queries before Purchasing

The answer will be helpful as a) areas could cause problems for the building as the common areas may start to deteriorate where services remain unpaid b) if the leasehold owners have an issue with the managing agents you will want to have all the details