Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only Sixty One years remaining on my flat in Harefield. I now wish to get lease extension but my landlord is missing. 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 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 magistrate. However, you will be required to prove that you or your lawyers have used your best endeavours to locate the freeholder. For most situations a specialist should be helpful to carry out a search and prepare a report to be accepted by the court as evidence that the landlord can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a solicitor in relation to devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court covering Harefield.

I am hoping to complete next month on a garden flat in Harefield. Conveyancing lawyers inform me that they are sending me a report on Monday. What should I be looking out for?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Harefield should include some of the following:

• Setting out your rights in respect of the communal areas in the block.By way of example, does the lease contain a right of way over an accessway or staircase?

Does the lease prohibit wood flooring?

You need to be told what counts as a Nuisance in the lease

Repair and maintenance of the flat

Changes to the flat (alterations and additions)

Responsibility for repairing the window frames

What you can do if a neighbour is in violation of a provision in their lease? For details of the information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Harefield please enquire of your solicitor in advance of your conveyancing in Harefield

Back In 2003, I bought a leasehold house in Harefield. Conveyancing and Alliance & Leicester mortgage are in place. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the freehold. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1995. The conveyancing solicitor in Harefield who previously acted has long since retired.Do I pay?

The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to make sure that this person is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. You do not need to incur the fees of a Harefield conveyancing practitioner to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for a few pound. Rest assured that regardless, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

We expect to complete the sale of our £300000 flat in Harefield next week. The landlords agents has quoted £396 for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and 3 years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge an administration fee for a leasehold conveyance in Harefield?

Harefield conveyancing on leasehold flats typically involves fees being raised by management companies :

• Completing pre-exchange questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Harefield
• Supplying insurance information
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your lawyer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Harefield leasehold premises is £350. For Harefield 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 required to provide the information.

I have attempted and failed to negotiate with my landlord to extend my lease without success. Can one apply to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal? Can you recommend a Harefield conveyancing firm to help?

Absolutely. We are happy to put you in touch with a Harefield conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension case for a Harefield flat is Flats 8, 11 and 15 Craigmore Court 46 Murray Road in December 2013. The tribunal held that the price payable by the Applicant tenant of Flat 8 to acquire an extended lease shall be £26,438 plus £1 to the intermediate lessee . The tribunal held that the price payable by the Applicant tenants of Flat 11 to acquire an extended lease shall be £26,791 plus £1 to the intermediate lessee. The tribunal held that the price payable by the Applicant tenant of Flat 15 to acquire an extended lease shall be £26,638 plus £1 to the intermediate lessee . This case affected 3 flats. The the unexpired term as at the valuation date was 71 years.

What are the common defects that you encounter in leases for Harefield properties?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Harefield. All leases is drafted differently and drafting errors can result in certain clauses are not included. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the premises
• Insurance obligations
• A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

A defective lease can cause problems when trying to sell a property primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Nationwide Building Society, Bank of Scotland, and Aldermore all have very detailed conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is defective they may refuse to provide security, forcing the purchaser to pull out.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Harefield