Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only Seventy years unexpired on my flat in Old Coulsdon. I need to get lease extension but my freeholder is can not be found. 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 for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be extended by the Court. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have made all reasonable attempts to track down the lessor. For most situations a specialist should be helpful to try and locate and prepare a report which can be accepted by the court as proof that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a solicitor both on proving the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court covering Old Coulsdon.

Expecting to exchange soon on a leasehold property in Old Coulsdon. Conveyancing lawyers assured me that they will have a report out to me on Monday. What should I be looking out for?

Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Old Coulsdon should include some of the following:

• Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, landlord

Defining your rights in respect of common areas in the block.E.G., does the lease permit a right of way over an accessway or staircase?

Does the lease require carpeting throughout thus preventing wood flooring?

Will you be prohibited or prevented from having pets in the property?

Whether your lease has a provision for a sinking fund?

Repair and maintenance of the flat

What you can do if a neighbour breach a clause of their lease? For details of the information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Old Coulsdon please ask your lawyer in ahead of your conveyancing in Old Coulsdon

I have just started marketing my basement flat in Old Coulsdon.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just had a quarterly maintenance charge invoice – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should discharge 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.

I've recently bought a leasehold house in Old Coulsdon. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before my ownership?

In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. Strange as it may seem, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to ensure 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).

Completion in due on our sale of a £475000 garden flat in Old Coulsdon in just under a week. The managing agents has quoted £324 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and previous years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in Old Coulsdon?

Old Coulsdon conveyancing on leasehold flats usually involves fees being invoiced by managing agents :

• Answering conveyancing due diligence enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in Old Coulsdon
• Copies of the building insurance and schedule
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your conveyancer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Old Coulsdon leasehold property is £350. For Old Coulsdon 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 required to provide the information.

I am the leaseholder of a two-bedroom flat in Old Coulsdon. In the absence of agreement between myself and the freeholder, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal make a decision on the premium due for the purchase of the freehold?

in cases where there is a missing landlord or where there is dispute about what the lease extension should cost, under the relevant legislation you can apply to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal to determine the sum to be paid.

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement matter before the tribunal for a Old Coulsdon property is 223 Brighton Road in September 2013. The premium payable for the acquisition freehold of the properties should be £10,934 (Ten thousand,nine hundred and thirty four pounds) This case affected 3 flats. The unexpired lease term was 75 years.