Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only 68 years remaining on my flat in Norbiton. I need to extend my lease but my landlord is absent. What options are available to me?

If you qualify, 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 enable the lease to be extended by the Court. However, you will be required to prove that you have made all reasonable attempts to locate the lessor. On the whole an enquiry agent would be useful to carry out a search and prepare an expert document to be used as proof that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer in relation to devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Norbiton.

I have just appointed agents to market my 2 bed flat in Norbiton.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just received a half-yearly maintenance charge demand – what should I do?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should pay 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 managing agents 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 own a leasehold house in Norbiton. Conveyancing and Barclays mortgage are in place. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1994. The conveyancing solicitor in Norbiton who previously acted has now retired.Any advice?

The first thing you should do is contact the Land Registry to make sure that this person is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. There is no need to instruct a Norbiton conveyancing solicitor to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for £3. You should note that regardless, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I've recently bought a leasehold flat in Norbiton. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to completion of my purchase?

In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. However, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to be sure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.

If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).

I am employed by a reputable estate agency in Norbiton where we see a number of flat sales derailed as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given conflicting advice from local Norbiton conveyancing solicitors. Can you confirm whether the owner of a flat can instigate the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

As long as the seller has been the owner 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 need not have to sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. 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.

An alternative approach is to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord 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 purchaser.

I have tried to negotiate informally with with my landlord to extend my lease without any joy. Can one make an application to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal? Can you recommend a Norbiton conveyancing firm to represent me?

Most certainly. We are happy to put you in touch with a Norbiton conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension case for a Norbiton premises is Flat D 15 Claremont Gardens in September 2013. TheTribunal determined in accordance with section48 and Schedule13 of the Leasehold Reform,Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 that the premium for the extended lease should be fourteen thousand one hundred and eighty seven pounds (£14,187.00) This case affected 1 flat.

I acquired a 2 bed flat in Norbiton, conveyancing having been completed 9 years ago. Can you shed any light on how much the price could be for a 90 year extension to my lease? Similar properties in Norbiton with over 90 years remaining are worth £246,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £60 invoiced every year. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2103

You have 77 years left to run we estimate the price of your lease extension to range between £9,500 and £11,000 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to advice on a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed due diligence. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt additional issues that need to be considered and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward based on this information without first getting professional advice.