There are only Fifty years left on my lease in Ladywell. I am keen to get lease extension but my freeholder is missing. What are my options?

On the basis that you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be granted an extra 90 years by the Court. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have done all that could be expected to locate the freeholder. In some cases a specialist should be useful to try and locate and to produce a report to be accepted by the court as evidence that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a conveyancer both on devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Ladywell.

I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that seems to be perfect, at a reasonable price which is making it all the more appealing. I have just discovered that it's a leasehold as opposed to freehold. I am assuming that there are particular concerns purchasing a house with a leasehold title in Ladywell. Conveyancing advisers have not yet been instructed. Will my lawyers set out the implications of buying a leasehold house in Ladywell ?

Most houses in Ladywell are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor used to dealing with such properties who can help the conveyancing process. We note that you are purchasing in Ladywell so you should seriously consider looking for a Ladywell conveyancing practitioner and check that they have experience in transacting on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. As a leaseholder you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want with the house. The lease comes with conditions such as obtaining the landlord’sconsent to conduct changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a maintenance charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the property is located on an estate. Your solicitor should report to you on the legal implications.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold house in Ladywell. Conveyancing and Skipton Building Society mortgage are in place. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1993. The conveyancing practitioner in Ladywell who acted for me is not around.Do I pay?

First contact the Land Registry to be sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is in fact the new freeholder. You do not need to instruct a Ladywell conveyancing solicitor to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. You should note that in any event, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Ladywell from the perspective of expediting the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Ladywell can be avoided if you appoint lawyers the minute you market your property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers conveyancers.
• The majority landlords or managing agents in Ladywell charge for providing management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack can be applied for as soon as you have a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most frequent cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in Ladywell.

Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on the disposal of our £325000 apartment in Ladywell in just under a week. The management company has quoted £396 for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and previous years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge such fees for a leasehold conveyance in Ladywell?

Ladywell conveyancing on leasehold flats more often than not requires the buyer’s lawyer submitting questions for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to address such questions the majority will be willing to assist. They may charge a reasonable administration fee for answering enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average fee for the information that you are referring to is £350, in some cases it is above £800. The administration charge required by the landlord must be accompanied by a summary of rights and obligations in respect of administration fees, otherwise the charge is not strictly payable. In reality you have no option but to pay whatever is requested of you should you wish to sell the property.

After years of correspondence we cannot agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Ladywell. Can we issue an application to the Residential Property Tribunal Service?

if there is a absentee freeholder or if there is dispute about the premium for a lease extension, under the relevant legislation you can apply to the LVT to decide the price.

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement case for a Ladywell property is 44 Elmer Road in January 2013. The Tribunal dacied that amount to be paid by the Leaseholders for the Landlords freehold reversion was £12,951 as at the valuation date (20" September 2012).This matter was referred back to the Bromley County Court to deal with costs, fees and any other outstanding matters. This case affected 2 flats. The the number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 74.25 years.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Ladywell