Examples of recent questions relating to leasehold conveyancing in Earls Court
There are only Seventy years left on my lease in Earls Court. I need to extend my lease but my landlord is can not be found. What options are available to me?
On the basis that you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be lengthened by the Court. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you have done all that could be expected to track down the landlord. In some cases an enquiry agent may be useful to try and locate and prepare an expert document which can be accepted by the court as proof that the freeholder can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a conveyancer in relation to proving the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing Earls Court.
I’m about to sell my garden apartment in Earls Court.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just had a yearly service charge demand – Do I pay up?
It best that you pay the invoice 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 management companies will not acknowledge the buyer unless 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.
What advice can you give us when it comes to choosing a Earls Court conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?
When appointing a conveyancer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Earls Court conveyancing firm) it is most important that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We recommend that you talk with several firms including non Earls Court conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions could be helpful:
- How familiar is the practice with lease extension legislation?
- What volume of lease extensions has the firm completed in Earls Court in the last twenty four months?
Completion in due on the disposal of our £ 200000 apartment in Earls Court next Friday . The landlords agents has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and previous years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in Earls Court?
Earls Court conveyancing on leasehold flats typically results in administration charges raised by managing agents :
- Answering pre-exchange questions
- Where consent is required before sale in Earls Court
- Supplying insurance information
- Deeds of covenant upon sale
- Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale
Having spent months of correspondence we simply can't agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Earls Court. Does the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal have jurisdiction to calculate the appropriate figures?
in cases where there is a missing landlord or if there is dispute about what the lease extension should cost, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) to judgment on the premium.
An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement decision for a Earls Court flat is 5 Wetherby Gardens in June 2014. the Tribunal concluded that the price to be paid for the freehold of the property was £2,369,452. This case related to 5 flats. The remaining number of years on the lease was 38.98 years.
What are the common defects that you see in leases for Earls Court properties?
Leasehold conveyancing in Earls Court is not unique. All leases are unique and legal mistakes in the legal wording can result in certain clauses are wrong. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:
- A provision to repair to or maintain parts of the premises
- A duty to insure the building
- 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
You could 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. Accord Mortgages Ltd, Virgin Money, and Alliance & Leicester all have very detailed requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is defective they may refuse to provide security, forcing the buyer to withdraw.
I bought a garden flat in Earls Court, conveyancing having been completed in 2008. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Similar properties in Earls Court with a long lease are worth £205,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £65 yearly. The lease ceases on 21st October 2089
With just 63 years unexpired we estimate the premium for your lease extension to span between £17,100 and £19,800 plus costs.
The figure above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to advice on the actual costs in the absence of comprehensive due diligence. You should not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt additional concerns that need to be considered and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward based on this information without first getting professional advice.