I have recently realised that I have 72 years left on my lease in East Bedfont. I now wish to extend my lease but my freeholder is missing. What should I do?

If 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 magistrate. You will be obliged to prove that you have done all that could be expected to find the lessor. For most situations an enquiry agent may be useful to conduct investigations and to produce an expert document which can be used as evidence that the landlord can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a solicitor both on investigating the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court covering East Bedfont.

I’m about to sell my 2 bed apartment in East Bedfont.Conveyancing has not commenced but I have just had a half-yearly service charge demand – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

The sensible thing to do is clear 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 managing agents 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.

I am attracted to a couple of flats in East Bedfont both have approximately fifty years left on the lease term. Will this present a problem?

There are no two ways about it. A leasehold flat in East Bedfont is a wasting asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The nearer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it adversely affects the marketability of the property. For most purchasers and mortgage companies, leases with less than 75 years become less and less attractive. On a more positive 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 premises 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 East Bedfont conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. More often than not it is possible to negotiate informally with the freeholder to extend 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.

I am employed by a long established estate agency in East Bedfont where we see a number of flat sales put at risk as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received conflicting advice from local East Bedfont conveyancing firms. Could you clarify whether the vendor of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the proposed purchaser can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or at the same time as completion of the sale.

An alternative approach is to agree the lease extension with the freeholder either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the buyer.

We expect to complete the disposal of our £225000 flat in East Bedfont in just under a week. The landlords agents has quoted £420 for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and 3 years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge such fees for a leasehold conveyance in East Bedfont?

East Bedfont conveyancing on leasehold apartments more often than not involves the purchaser’s solicitor submitting enquiries for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is not legally bound to respond to such questions the majority will be content to do so. They may levy a reasonable charge for responding to questions 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 situations it is above £800. The administration charge demanded by the landlord must be sent together with a synopsis of entitlements and obligations in relation to administration fees, otherwise the charge is technically not due. Reality however dictates that one has little choice but to pay whatever is requested of you should you wish to complete the sale of your home.

I have given up seeking a lease extension in East Bedfont. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal adjudicate on premiums?

Absolutely. We can put you in touch with a East Bedfont conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a East Bedfont flat is 147 Redford Close in June 2012. The Tribunal determined the lease extension premium to be at £4,200 This case affected 1 flat. The unexpired term was 82.93 years.