I only have Sixty One years unexpired on my flat in Greenford. I need to get lease extension but my freeholder is can not be found. What options are available to me?

If you qualify, 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 lengthened by the Court. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you have made all reasonable attempts to find the landlord. In some cases an enquiry agent would be useful to conduct investigations and to produce an expert document which can be accepted by the court as evidence that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a property lawyer in relation to proving the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court covering Greenford.

I've found a house that seems to tick a lot of boxes, at a great figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have since been informed that the title is leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are issues purchasing a house with a leasehold title in Greenford. Conveyancing lawyers have are soon to be instructed. Will my lawyers set out the implications of buying a leasehold house in Greenford ?

Most houses in Greenford are freehold rather than leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer used to dealing with such properties who can help the conveyancing process. We note that you are purchasing in Greenford so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Greenford conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they have experience in transacting on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. Being a leaseholder you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions for example obtaining the freeholder’spermission to carry out changes to the property. You may also be required to pay a contribution towards the maintenance of the communal areas where the property is located on an estate. Your conveyancer will report to you on the legal implications.

Last month I purchased a leasehold property in Greenford. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to my ownership?

In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. However, 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 be sure 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).

What are your top tips when it comes to choosing a Greenford conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a solicitor for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Greenford conveyancing firm) it is essential that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We recommend that you make enquires with several firms including non Greenford conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be helpful:

• How experienced is the practice with lease extension legislation?
• What are the legal fees for lease extension work?

All being well we will complete our sale of a £ 475000 garden flat in Greenford in just under a week. The freeholder has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and previous years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Greenford?

Greenford conveyancing on leasehold flats normally necessitates fees being raised by managing agents :

• Completing pre-contract enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in Greenford
• Copies of the building insurance and schedule
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your conveyancer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Greenford leasehold premises is £350. For Greenford 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.

After years of negotiations we are unable to agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Greenford. Does the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal have jurisdiction to calculate the appropriate figures?

Most certainly. We can put you in touch with a Greenford conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a Greenford property is 25 Beechwood Avenue in November 2012. the Tribunal accordingly determined that the premium for the lease extension should be £24,353. This case affected 1 flat. The unexpired term was 58.19 years.

I invested in buying a 2 bed flat in Greenford, conveyancing formalities finalised half a dozen years ago. How much will my lease extension cost? Equivalent properties in Greenford with over 90 years remaining are worth £235,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £65 levied per year. The lease runs out on 21st October 2101

You have 75 years unexpired the likely cost is going to span between £8,600 and £9,800 as well as costs.

The figure above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of detailed due diligence. You should not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be other issues that need to be considered and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward placing reliance on this information without first getting professional advice.