I have recently realised that I have 68 years unexpired on my flat in Muswell Hill. I am keen to get lease extension but my freeholder is missing. What options are available to me?

If 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 extended by the magistrate. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you have done all that could be expected to track down the freeholder. In some cases an enquiry agent may be helpful to carry out a search and to produce an expert document to be used as evidence that the landlord can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a solicitor in relation to devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing Muswell Hill.

Back In 2001, I bought a leasehold flat in Muswell Hill. Conveyancing and HSBC Bank mortgage organised. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1998. The conveyancing solicitor in Muswell Hill who previously acted has long since retired.Any advice?

First contact HMLR to make sure that this person is indeed the new freeholder. It is not necessary to instruct a Muswell Hill conveyancing lawyer to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. You should note that regardless, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I am a negotiator for a long established estate agency in Muswell Hill where we have experienced a few flat sales derailed as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given conflicting advice from local Muswell Hill conveyancing firms. Can you shed some light as to whether the vendor of a flat can initiate the lease extension process for the buyer?

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 proposed purchaser can avoid having 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 at the same time as completion of the sale.

An alternative approach is 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.

What advice can you give us when it comes to appointing a Muswell Hill conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

If you are instructing a property lawyer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Muswell Hill conveyancing firm) it is imperative that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We advise that you make enquires with several firms including non Muswell Hill conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions could be of use:

• If they are not ALEP accredited then what is the reason?
• What volume of lease extensions has the firm completed in Muswell Hill in the last 12 months?

We have reached the end of our tether in trying to purchase the freehold in Muswell Hill. Can this matter be resolved via the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal?

if there is a missing landlord or if 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 LVT to decide the premium.

An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a Muswell Hill premises is Flat B 10 Grove Avenue in October 2013. Following a vesting order Clerkenwell and Shoreditch County Court 3rd July 2013 The tribunal determines that the premium payable for the lease extension was £36,215.00 This case affected 1 flat. The the unexpired residue of the current lease was 65.21 years.

What makes a Muswell Hill lease unmortgageable?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Muswell Hill. Most leases are individual and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain provisions are wrong. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• A provision to repair to or maintain elements of the premises
• Insurance obligations
• 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 will likely cause issues when trying to sell a property as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. National Westminster Bank, Barnsley Building Society, and Clydesdale 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 is problematic they may refuse to grant the mortgage, obliging the buyer to withdraw.

I inherited a 2 bed flat in Muswell Hill, conveyancing was carried out 2001. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Comparable properties in Muswell Hill with an extended lease are worth £230,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £65 charged once a year. The lease ends on 21st October 2080

With only 54 years remaining on your lease the likely cost is going to be between £27,600 and £31,800 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to supply the actual costs in the absence of detailed due diligence. Do not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt additional issues that need to be taken into account and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward based on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.