Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Mortlake. Before I set the wheels in motion I require certainty as to the unexpired term of the lease.

Assuming the lease is recorded at the land registry - and most are in Mortlake - then the leasehold title will always include the basic details 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.

Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only Seventy years unexpired on my flat in Mortlake. I am keen to get lease extension but my landlord is missing. What options are available to me?

If you qualify, 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 enable the lease to be lengthened by the Court. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you have made all reasonable attempts to track down the freeholder. In some cases a specialist should be helpful to carry out a search and to produce an expert document to be accepted by the court as proof that the freeholder can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a conveyancer in relation to investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing Mortlake.

I have just appointed agents to market my garden apartment in Mortlake.Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon but I have just had a half-yearly service charge invoice – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

It best that you clear 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 until 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. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Mortlake with the aim of speeding up the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Mortlake can be bypassed where you appoint lawyers the minute you market your property and request that they start to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the purchasers’ solicitors.
• If you have carried out any alterations to the property would they have required Landlord’s permission? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Mortlake state that internal structural alterations or addition of wooden flooring necessitate a licence from the Landlord approving such changes. Where you fail to have the paperwork in place you should not communicate with the landlord without checking with your lawyer in advance.
• If there is a history of any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are settled prior to the flat being put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be concerned about purchasing a property where there is an ongoing dispute. You may have to bite the bullet and discharge any arrears of service charge or settle 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 details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to reveal the dispute as historic as opposed to unsettled.
• If you hold a share in a the freehold, you should make sure that you are holding the original share certificate. Obtaining a new share certificate can be a lengthy process and slows down many a Mortlake conveyancing transaction. Where a reissued share certificate is required, do contact 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 verify this by asking your conveyancers. A purchaser's conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to where the lease term is under 80 years. In the circumstances it is important at an early stage that you identify whether the lease for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

If all goes to plan we aim to complete the disposal of our £ 425000 maisonette in Mortlake next Monday . The management company has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and 3 years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in Mortlake?

Mortlake conveyancing on leasehold flats usually requires the purchaser’s conveyancer sending questions for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is not legally bound to respond to such questions most will be content to do so. They are at liberty charge a reasonable administration fee for answering enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average costs for the paperwork that you are referring to is £350, in some situations it is in excess of £800. The administration charge demanded by the landlord must be sent together with a summary of entitlements and obligations in respect of administration charges, without which the charge is not strictly payable. In reality you have little choice but to pay whatever is demanded should you wish to complete the sale of your home.

I am the leaseholder of a two-bedroom flat in Mortlake. Given that I can not reach agreement with the freeholder, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal determine the premium due for a lease extension?

if there is a missing freeholder or if there is disagreement about what the lease extension should cost, under the relevant statutes it is possible to make an application to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal to decide the premium.

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement matter before the tribunal for a Mortlake property 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 unexpired lease term was 66.25 years.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Mortlake - Examples of Questions you should ask before buying

This information is useful as a) areas could result in problems in the building as the common areas may start to deteriorate if repairs are not paid for b) if the leasehold owners have an issue with the managing agents you will want to know about it In the main the outlay for major works are not included within service charges, albeit that there some managing agents in Mortlake obliged leaseholders to pay into a reserve fund created for the specific purpose of establishing a fund for larger repairs or maintenance.