I have just appointed agents to market my ground floor flat in Dollis Hill.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just received a yearly maintenance charge demand – what should I do?

The sensible thing to do is clear the service charge as normal because all ground rent and service charges will be apportioned on completion, so you will be reimbursed by the buyer for the period running from after the completion date to the next payment date. Most managing agents will not acknowledge the buyer until the service charges have been paid and are up to date so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold house in Dollis Hill. Conveyancing and National Westminster Bank mortgage organised. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1993. The conveyancing solicitor in Dollis Hill who acted for me is not around.Do I pay?

First make enquiries of the Land Registry to make sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. You do not need to incur the fees of a Dollis Hill conveyancing solicitor to do this as it can be done on-line for £3. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

Last month I purchased a leasehold property in Dollis Hill. Do I have any liability for service charges relating to a period prior to my ownership?

Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner 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 ensure 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 finding a Dollis Hill conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

If you are instructing a conveyancer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Dollis Hill conveyancing practice) it is imperative that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We recommend that you talk with several firms including non Dollis Hill conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be useful:

• How experienced is the firm with lease extension legislation?
• What volume of lease extensions have they conducted in Dollis Hill in the last twenty four months?

I inherited a garden flat in Dollis Hill. Given that I can not reach agreement with the freeholder, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal make a decision on the amount payable for the purchase of the freehold?

if there is a missing landlord or if there is dispute about what the lease extension should cost, under the relevant statutes you can apply to the LVT to make a decision on the sum to be paid.

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement case for a Dollis Hill residence is 12 & 12A Deacon Road in May 2010. the Tribunal concluded that the price to be paid for the freehold should be £38,287 This case affected 2 flats. The the unexpired term as at the valuation date was 65.58 years.

What are the frequently found defects that you encounter in leases for Dollis Hill properties?

Leasehold conveyancing in Dollis Hill is not unique. Most leases are unique and legal mistakes in the legal wording can result in certain clauses are not included. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain elements of the building
• Insurance obligations
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

A defective lease can cause issues when trying to sell a property primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Birmingham Midshires, Chelsea Building Society, and Godiva Mortgages Ltd 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 grant the mortgage, obliging the buyer to pull out.

Dollis Hill Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Questions you should consider before buying

The prefered form of lease structure is if the freehold interest is owned by the leaseholders. In this scenario the lessees benefit from control and notwithstanding that a managing agent is frequently employed if the building is bigger than a house conversion, the managing agent acts for the leaseholders themselves. Is the freehold owned collectively by the tenants?