Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Ealing. Before diving in I require certainty as to the number of years remaining on the lease.

If the lease is registered - and 99.9% are in Ealing - then the leasehold title will always include the basic details of the lease, namely the date; the term; and the original parties. From a conveyancing perspective such details then enable any prospective buyer and lender to confirm that any lease they are looking at is the one relevant to that title.For any other purpose, such as confirming how long the term was granted for and calculating what is left, then the register should be sufficient on it's own.

I only have Seventy years unexpired on my flat in Ealing. I need to get lease extension but my freeholder is missing. What are my options?

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 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 or your lawyers have done all that could be expected to locate the freeholder. For most situations an enquiry agent would be helpful to try and locate and to produce a report to be accepted by the court as evidence that the freeholder can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a solicitor in relation to devolving into the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Ealing.

I am attracted to a couple of maisonettes in Ealing both have about 50 years unexpired on the lease term. Will this present a problem?

There are plenty of short leases in Ealing. The lease is a right to use the property for a prescribed time frame. As a lease shortens the value of the lease decreases and it becomes more costly to acquire a lease extension. This is why it is often a good idea to extend the lease term. It is often difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease because mortgage lenders less inclined to grant a loan on properties of this type. Lease enfranchisement can be a difficult process. We recommend you get professional help from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this arena

If all goes to plan we aim to complete our sale of a £250000 maisonette in Ealing on Thursday in a week. The landlords agents has quoted £336 for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and 3 years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Ealing?

For most leasehold sales in Ealing conveyancing will involve, queries regarding the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :

• Answering conveyancing due diligence questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Ealing
• Supplying insurance information
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your solicitor will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Ealing leasehold premises is £350. For Ealing conveyancing transactions it is customary for the seller to pay for these costs. The landlord or their agents are under no legal obligation to answer such questions most will be willing to do so - albeit often at exorbitant prices where the fees bear little relation to the work involved. Unfortunately there is no law that requires fixed charges for administrative tasks. Neither is there any legal time frame by which they are obliged to provide the information.

I have attempted and failed to negotiate with my landlord to extend my lease without success. Can a leaseholder apply to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal? Can you recommend a Ealing conveyancing firm to assist?

if there is a missing freeholder or if there is dispute about the premium for a lease extension, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 it is possible to make an application to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) to determine the price payable.

An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a Ealing flat is Flat 4 38 The Mall in April 2014. the Tribunal held that the premium payable for the lease extension to be £25,451 This case affected 1 flat. The unexpired lease term was 68.7 years.

What are the common problems that you come across in leases for Ealing properties?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Ealing. Most leases are individual and legal mistakes in the legal wording 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 parts of the premises
• A duty to insure the building
• 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

You may encounter 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, Norwich and Peterborough Building Society, and Platform Home Loans Ltd all have very detailed requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is defective they may refuse to provide security, forcing the purchaser to pull out.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Ealing