Leasehold Conveyancing in Friern Barnet - Get a Quote from the leasehold experts approved by your lender

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While any conveyancing solicitor can theoretically deal with your leasehold conveyancing in Friern Barnet, your mortgage provider may not be willing to work with them if the firm are not on their list of approved solicitors for conveyancing

Frequently asked questions relating to Friern Barnet leasehold conveyancing

I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Friern Barnet. Before I set the wheels in motion I want to be sure as to the remaining lease term.

Assuming the lease is registered - and most are in Friern Barnet - 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 have recently realised that I have Seventy years remaining on my flat in Friern Barnet. I now wish to extend my lease but my freeholder is missing. What are my options?

If you meet the appropriate requirements, 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 mean that your lease can be granted an extra 90 years by the Court. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have used your best endeavours to find the freeholder. On the whole an enquiry agent would be useful to try and locate and to produce a report to be used as evidence that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a conveyancer both on proving the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Friern Barnet.

I am looking at a couple of apartments in Friern Barnet both have in the region of 50 years left on the lease term. Do I need to be concerned?

A lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the property for a period of time. As the lease shortens the marketability of the lease deteriorate and results in it becoming more costly to extend the lease. For this reason it is often a good idea to extend the lease term. It is often difficult to sell a property with a short lease as mortgage companies less inclined to grant a loan on such properties. Lease extension can be a protracted process. We recommend you get professional help from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this area

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Friern Barnet from the perspective of speeding up the sale process?

  • Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Friern Barnet can be reduced if you instruct lawyers the minute your agents start marketing the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the purchasers’ conveyancers.
  • In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s approval? Have you, for example laid down wooden flooring? Friern Barnet leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or installing wooden flooring calls for a licence issued by the Landlord consenting to such changes. Where you fail to have the approvals to hand you should not communicate with the landlord without contacting your solicitor first.
  • If there is a history of conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved prior to the flat being marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where there is a current dispute. You may have to bite the bullet and pay any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to present the dispute as over as opposed to unsettled.
  • If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should ensure that you are holding the original share document. Arranging a new share certificate is often a time consuming process and slows down many a Friern Barnet conveyancing transaction. If a duplicate share is required, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (where applicable) for this as soon as possible.
  • You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but it would be advisable double-check by asking your solicitors. A buyer’s conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to to exchange contracts if the lease term is under 75 years. It is therefore important at an early stage that you identify whether the lease for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

    • We expect to complete the sale of our £300000 garden flat in Friern Barnet in just under a week. The management company has quoted £300 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and previous years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge an administration fee for a leasehold conveyance in Friern Barnet?

    Friern Barnet conveyancing on leasehold flats usually necessitates the buyer’s solicitor sending questions for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to address these enquiries the majority will be content to assist. They are at liberty charge a reasonable charge for answering questions or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average fee for the paperwork that you are referring to is £350, in some cases it is in excess of £800. The management information fee invoiced by the landlord must be accompanied by a synopsis of entitlements and obligations in respect of administration charges, otherwise the charge is not strictly payable. Reality however dictates that you have little option but to pay whatever is requested of you if you want to sell the property.

    I own a two-bedroom flat in Friern Barnet. In the absence of agreement between myself and the freeholder, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal make a decision on the amount payable for the purchase of the freehold?

    in cases where there is a absentee freeholder or where 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 LVT to make a decision on the sum to be paid.

    An example of a Lease Extension case for a Friern Barnet residence is 34 Poplar Grove in June 2013. The Tribunal directed that the premium for the lease extension should be in the sum of £10,250. This case was in relation to 1 flat.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Friern Barnet