There are only 68 years unexpired on my flat in Charing Cross. I now wish to get lease extension but my freeholder is can not be found. 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 granted an extra 90 years by the Court. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you have used your best endeavours to find the freeholder. On the whole an enquiry agent may be helpful to try and locate and prepare an expert document to be accepted by the court as evidence that the freeholder can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a property lawyer both on proving the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Charing Cross.

Looking forward to sign contracts shortly on a ground floor flat in Charing Cross. Conveyancing lawyers assured me that they report fully next week. What should I be looking out for?

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

• Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, landlord
• Whether the lease restricts you from subletting the flat, or working from home
• An explanation as to the provision in the lease to pay service charges - with regard to both the building, and the more general rights a leaseholder has
• Whether your lease has a provision for a reserve fund?
• You should have a good understanding of the insurance provisions
• The landlord’s rights to access the flat you be made aware that your landlord has rights of access and I know how much notice s/he must provide.
• Responsibility for repairing the window frames

I today plan to offer on a house that seems to be perfect, at a great figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have just discovered that the title is leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are issues buying a leasehold house in Charing Cross. Conveyancing advisers have are soon to be instructed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Charing Cross are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area can help the conveyancing process. it is apparent that you are purchasing in Charing Cross so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Charing Cross conveyancing solicitor and check that they are used to advising on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the unexpired lease term. As a lessee you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions such as requiring the freeholder’spermission to carry out changes to the property. You may also be required to pay a maintenance charge towards the upkeep of the estate where the house is part of an estate. Your solicitor should advise you fully on all the issues.

I am attracted to a two apartments in Charing Cross both have about 50 years unexpired on the lease term. Will this present a problem?

There is no doubt about it. A leasehold apartment in Charing Cross is a deteriorating asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The closer the lease gets to its expiry date, the more it reduces the marketability of the property. The majority of purchasers and lenders, leases with under 75 years become less and less attractive. On a more upbeat note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the premises 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 property 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 Charing Cross conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. A more straightforward and quicker method of extending would be to contact your landlord directly and sound him out on the prospect of extending the lease You may find he or she is happy to negotiate informally and willing to consider your offer straight off, without having to involve anyone else. This will save you time and money and it could help you reach a lower price on the lease. You need to ensure that the agreed 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.

Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on our sale of a £ 275000 flat in Charing Cross next Wednesday . The managing agents has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and 3 years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in Charing Cross?

Charing Cross conveyancing on leasehold apartments usually necessitates the buyer’s lawyer submitting enquiries for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to respond to such questions the majority will be willing to do so. They may levy a reasonable administration fee for responding to enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average costs for the information that you are referring to is £350, in some transactions it is above £800. The administration charge levied by the landlord must be accompanied by a summary of entitlements and obligations in relation to administration charges, without which the invoice is technically not due. Reality however dictates that you have little choice but to pay whatever is demanded should you wish to exchange contracts with the buyer.

We have reached the end of our tether in negotiating a lease extension in Charing Cross. Can this matter be resolved via the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal?

Where there is a absentee landlord or where there is dispute about what the lease extension should cost, under the relevant statutes you can apply to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal to calculate the premium.

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement decision for a Charing Cross flat is 20 Avonwick Road in July 2013. The Tribunal was dealing with an application under Section 26 of the Leasehold Reform Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 for a determination of the freehold value of the property. It was concluded that the price to be paid was Fifteen Thousand Nine Hundred and Seventy (£15,970) divided as to £8,200 for Flat 20 and £7,770 for Flat 20A This case was in relation to 1 flat. The remaining number of years on the lease was 73.26 years.

I invested in buying a 1 bedroom flat in Charing Cross, conveyancing having been completed 1995. Can you shed any light on how much the price could be for a 90 year extension to my lease? Corresponding flats in Charing Cross with an extended lease are worth £169,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £45 invoiced every year. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2105

With only 79 years remaining on your lease we estimate the price of your lease extension to be between £9,500 and £11,000 as well as costs.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to advice on the actual costs without more comprehensive investigations. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt additional issues that need to be considered and clearly you want to 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.