I own a leasehold flat in Kingston Vale. Conveyancing and Barclays Direct mortgage are in place. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1991. The conveyancing solicitor in Kingston Vale who previously acted has long since retired.What should I do?

The first thing you should do is contact the Land Registry to make sure that this person is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. There is no need to incur the fees of a Kingston Vale conveyancing firm to do this as it can be done on-line for a few pound. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a couple of flats in Kingston Vale which have about 50 years left on the leases. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

There are no two ways about it. A leasehold flat in Kingston Vale is a wasting asset as a result of the shortening lease. The nearer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it reduces the value of the property. The majority of buyers and lenders, leases with less than eighty 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 property 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 property 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 Kingston Vale 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 any new 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 reputable estate agency in Kingston Vale where we have experienced a few flat sales put at risk due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received inconsistent advice from local Kingston Vale conveyancing solicitors. Can you shed some light as to whether the vendor of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

As long as the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the buyer need not have to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or simultaneously with completion of the sale.

Alternatively, it may be possible 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 purchaser.

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Kingston Vale with the intention of speeding up the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Kingston Vale can be bypassed if you appoint lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and ask them to collate the leasehold documentation needed by the purchasers’ lawyers.
• Some Kingston Vale leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are financially capable of paying the yearly service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their lawyers.
• If there is a history of conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is essential that these are settled before the property is marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be warry about purchasing a property where there is a current dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to pay any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal particulars of the dispute to the buyers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as historic as opposed to unresolved.
• If you are supposed to have a share in the Management Company, you should make sure that you hold the original share certificate. Obtaining a re-issued share certificate can be a time consuming formality and frustrates many a Kingston Vale conveyancing transaction. If a new share is required, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (where relevant) for this at the earliest opportunity.
• You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but you should double-check by asking your conveyancers. A buyer’s lawyer will not be happy to advise their client to to exchange contracts if the remaining number of years is under 80 years. In the circumstances it is important at an as soon as possible that you identify whether the lease for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale.

Notwithstanding our best endeavours, we have been unsuccessful in negotiating a lease extension in Kingston Vale. Can this matter be resolved via the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal?

in cases where there is a absentee landlord or where there is disagreement about what the lease extension should cost, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 it is possible to make an application to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) to calculate the premium.

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement case for a Kingston Vale premises is 19 St. Margarets Crescent in August 2010. the tribunal was of the view that the premium to be paid by the leaseholder for the freehold reversion was £51,983.00 This case related to 3 flats. The the number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 66.25 years.

In relation to leasehold conveyancing in Kingston Vale what are the most common lease problems?

Leasehold conveyancing in Kingston Vale is not unique. All leases are individual and drafting errors can sometimes mean that certain provisions are erroneous. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain elements of the building
• A duty to insure the building
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

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. HSBC Bank, Barnsley Building Society, and Clydesdale all have express requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is defective they may refuse to grant the mortgage, obliging the purchaser to withdraw.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Kingston Vale - A selection of Queries before Purchasing

Best to be warned whether window replacement or some other significant cost is due in the near future to be shared by the leasehold owners and could well materially increase the the service fees or require a one off invoice.