Recently asked questions relating to Hammersmith leasehold conveyancing
I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Hammersmith. Before I set the wheels in motion I want to be sure as to the remaining lease term.
If the lease is registered - and most are in Hammersmith - then the leasehold title will always include the short particulars 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.
There are only 68 years unexpired on my flat in Hammersmith. I now want to extend my lease 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 mean that your lease can be lengthened by the Court. You will be obliged to prove that you have used your best endeavours to locate the freeholder. In some cases a specialist would be useful to try and locate and prepare a report to be accepted by the court as proof that the freeholder can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer both on investigating the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court covering Hammersmith.
Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my basement flat in Hammersmith.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just had a half-yearly maintenance charge demand – Do I pay up?
Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should 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 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.
My wife and I purchased a leasehold flat in Hammersmith. Conveyancing and Santander mortgage organised. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1996. The conveyancing practitioner in Hammersmith who acted for me is not around.Do I pay?
The first thing you should do is make enquiries of the Land Registry to make sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is in fact the new freeholder. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Hammersmith conveyancing solicitor to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for £3. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.
I am looking at a two maisonettes in Hammersmith both have approximately fifty years left on the lease term. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?
There are plenty of short leases in Hammersmith. The lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the premises for a prescribed time frame. As the lease gets shorter the marketability of the lease deteriorate and it becomes more expensive to extend the lease. For this reason it is often a good idea to extend the lease term. Sometimes it is difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease because mortgage companies less inclined to grant a loan on properties of this type. Lease enfranchisement can be a difficult process. We recommend you get professional assistance from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this field
Following months of negotiations we are unable to agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Hammersmith. Can we issue an application to the Residential Property Tribunal Service?
Most certainly. We can put you in touch with a Hammersmith conveyancing firm who can help.
An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement decision for a Hammersmith flat is 19 Crisp Road in June 2009. Following a vesting order (Under section 26 of the Leasehold Reform,Housing and Urban Development Act 1993) The tribunal determined that the premium payable for the acquisition of the freehold was £33,756,apportioned as to£12,285 for the lower at and £21,471for the upper fat. This case related to 2 flats. The unexpired lease term was 68.32 years.
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