Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only 72 years unexpired on my flat in Lambeth. I need to get lease extension but my freeholder 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 for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be lengthened by the magistrate. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have made all reasonable attempts to find the lessor. In some cases a specialist should be useful to try and locate and to produce an expert document to be accepted by the court as proof that the landlord can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer both on investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Lambeth.

Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my garden apartment in Lambeth.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just had a half-yearly maintenance charge invoice – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

It best that you discharge the service charge 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.

I today plan to offer on a house that seems to tick a lot of boxes, at a reasonable price which is making it all the more appealing. I have subsequently been informed that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are issues purchasing a leasehold house in Lambeth. Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed. Will my lawyers set out the risks of buying a leasehold house in Lambeth ?

Most houses in Lambeth are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can assist with the conveyancing process. We note that you are buying in Lambeth so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Lambeth conveyancing practitioner and check that they have experience in dealing with leasehold houses. First you will need to check the unexpired lease term. Being a leaseholder you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want with the house. The lease comes with conditions for example requiring the freeholder’spermission to carry out alterations. It may be necessary to pay a service charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the house is located on an estate. Your lawyer should advise you fully on all the issues.

I am a negotiator for a long established estate agent office in Lambeth where we see a number of flat sales jeopardised due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received contradictory information from local Lambeth conveyancing solicitors. Please can you shed some light as to whether the owner of a flat can initiate the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser need not have to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done prior to, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

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 buyer.

Following years of dialogue we are unable to agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Lambeth. Can we issue an application to the Residential Property Tribunal Service?

Most definitely. We can put you in touch with a Lambeth conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension case for a Lambeth premises is Flats 12A & 19, Evelyn Mansions Carlisle Place in June 2009. The Tribunal held that the price to be paid for the new lease of Flat 12A is £168,824, For the other flat the price was set at £169,110 This case related to 2 flats. The unexpired term was 56 years.

In relation to leasehold conveyancing in Lambeth what are the most common lease defects?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Lambeth. All leases are individual and legal mistakes in the legal wording can result in certain sections are missing. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• A provision to repair 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.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

You may have difficulties when selling your property if you have a defective lease as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Santander, Bank of Scotland, and Godiva Mortgages Ltd all have very detailed requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to provide security, obliging the purchaser to withdraw.

Lambeth Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Questions you should consider Prior to buying

How much is the maintenance charge and ground rent on the flat? Generally speaking the cost for major works tend not to be built into the maintenance charges, although some managing agents in Lambeth require leaseholders to contribute towards a reserve fund and this is used to offset against major works.