I only have 72 years left on my lease in North Finchley. I now wish to extend my lease but my landlord is missing. What should I do?

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 an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be lengthened by the Court. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have used your best endeavours to track down the lessor. On the whole a specialist would be helpful to try and locate and to produce a report which can be used as evidence that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a solicitor in relation to investigating the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court covering North Finchley.

I’m about to sell my 2 bed apartment in North Finchley.Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon but I have just received a yearly service charge invoice – Do I pay up?

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 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've found a house that appears to tick a lot of boxes, at a great figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have since been informed that it's a leasehold as opposed to freehold. I am assuming that there are particular concerns purchasing a house with a leasehold title in North Finchley. Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed. Will my lawyers set out the risks of buying a leasehold house in North Finchley ?

The majority of houses in North Finchley are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor used to dealing with such properties who can help the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are purchasing in North Finchley in which case you should be looking for a North Finchley conveyancing practitioner and check that they have experience in advising on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. Being a lessee you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions for example requiring the freeholder’sconsent to carry out changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a maintenance charge towards the maintenance of the communal areas where the house is part of an estate. Your lawyer should appraise you on the various issues.

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in North Finchley with the aim of saving time on the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in North Finchley can be avoided where you get in touch lawyers as soon as you market your property and ask them to collate the leasehold information needed by the purchasers’ solicitors.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s consent? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? North Finchley leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or addition of wooden flooring calls for a licence issued by the Landlord acquiescing to such alterations. Should you dont have the consents in place do not contact the landlord without checking with your conveyancer before hand.

If there is a history of any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved before the property is put on the market. The buyers and their solicitors will be concerned about purchasing a flat where there is a current dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to pay any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to completion of the sale. 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 purchasers, but it is better to reveal the dispute as historic as opposed to ongoing.

If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should make sure that you hold the original share document. Obtaining a replacement share certificate is often a lengthy formality and delays many a North Finchley home move. If a duplicate share is needed, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (if applicable) for this sooner rather than later.

You may think that you are aware of the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be wise to double-check by asking your lawyers. A purchaser's lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to to exchange contracts if the lease term is under 80 years. It is therefore essential at an as soon as possible that you consider whether the lease requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on the disposal of our £125000 garden flat in North Finchley next week. The landlords agents has quoted £372 for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and 3 years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in North Finchley?

For the majority of leasehold sales in North Finchley conveyancing will involve, questions about the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :

• Completing conveyancing due diligence questions
• Where consent is required before sale in North Finchley
• Supplying insurance information
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your lawyer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for North Finchley leasehold premises is £350. For North Finchley conveyancing transactions it is customary for the seller to pay for these costs. The landlord or their agents are under no legal obligation to answer such questions most will be willing to do so - albeit often at exorbitant prices where the fees bear little relation to the work involved. Unfortunately there is no law that requires fixed charges for administrative tasks. Neither is there any legal time frame by which they are obliged to provide the information.

I own a first flat in North Finchley. Given that I can not reach agreement with the freeholder, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal make a decision on the sum payable for a lease extension?

if there is a absentee freeholder or where there is disagreement about the premium for a lease extension, under the relevant statutes it is possible to make an application to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) to calculate the premium.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a North Finchley flat is Flat 2 2 Netherfield Road in April 2010. The Tribunale held that premium payable for a 90 year extension to the existing Lease should be £7,705. This case affected 1 flat. The unexpired term was 76 years.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in North Finchley