Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only 62 years remaining on my flat in New Addington. I now want to extend my lease but my freeholder is missing. What should I do?

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 magistrate. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you have used your best endeavours to track down the freeholder. In some cases an enquiry agent would be helpful to try and locate and prepare a report to be accepted by the court as evidence that the freeholder can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a solicitor in relation to proving the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court covering New Addington.

I today plan to offer on a house that appears to meet my requirements, at a reasonable price which is making it all the more appealing. I have just discovered that the title is leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are particular concerns buying a leasehold house in New Addington. Conveyancing solicitors have are about to be appointed. Will my lawyers set out the risks of buying a leasehold house in New Addington ?

The majority of houses in New Addington are freehold rather than leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can assist with the conveyancing process. We note that you are purchasing in New Addington in which case you should be shopping around for a New Addington conveyancing solicitor and check that they are used to dealing with leasehold houses. First you will need to check the unexpired lease term. As a tenant you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want to the property. The lease will likely included provisions such as requiring the freeholder’sconsent to carry out alterations. You may also be required to pay a maintenance 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 attracted to a two apartments in New Addington which have approximately forty five years remaining on the leases. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

There is no doubt about it. A leasehold flat in New Addington is a wasting asset as a result of the shortening lease. The nearer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it adversely affects the salability of the property. For most buyers and banks, leases with less than 75 years become less and less attractive. On a more upbeat note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the premises 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 New Addington 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.

Can you offer any advice when it comes to choosing a New Addington conveyancing firm to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

When appointing a conveyancer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a New Addington conveyancing firm) it is essential that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We advise that you speak with several firms including non New Addington 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:

• How familiar is the practice with lease extension legislation?
• What volume of lease extensions have they conducted in New Addington in the last twenty four months?

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

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in New Addington can be reduced where you instruct lawyers the minute you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the purchasers’ representatives.
• The majority freeholders or Management Companies in New Addington charge for providing management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should find out the actual amount of the charges. The management information sought as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. The typical amount of time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most frequent cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in New Addington.
• If you have carried out any alterations to the residence would they have required Landlord’s permission? Have you, for example laid down wooden flooring? New Addington leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or laying down wooden flooring necessitate a licence from the Landlord acquiescing to such alterations. If you fail to have the consents in place you should not contact the landlord without checking with your solicitor before hand.
• If you have had any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved prior to the flat being put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where there is an ongoing dispute. You may have to bite the bullet and pay 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 prior to 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 over rather than unresolved.
• If you hold a share in a the Management Company, you should ensure that you hold the original share document. Obtaining a re-issued share certificate is often a lengthy process and slows down many a New Addington home move. Where a duplicate share is required, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (if relevant) for this as soon as possible.

After years of correspondence we simply can't agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in New Addington. Does the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal have jurisdiction to calculate the appropriate figures?

Where there is a absentee freeholder or if there is disagreement about what the lease extension should cost, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the LVT to make a decision on the price payable.

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement decision for a New Addington property is The Woodlands 95 Purley Park Road in April 2009. The Tribunals own valuation produced the fi
gure of £37,912. This case related to 6 flats. The the unexpired term as at the valuation date was 78.32 years.

New Addington Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Questions you should ask before Purchasing

How many of the leaseholders are in arrears for their maintenance charge payments?