I only have Seventy years unexpired on my lease in Parsons Green. I am keen to get lease extension but my freeholder is absent. 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 mean that your lease can be granted an extra 90 years by the Court. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have made all reasonable attempts to track down the lessor. In some cases an enquiry agent would be helpful to conduct investigations and to produce a report to be accepted by the court as proof that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer in relation to investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court covering Parsons Green.

I’m about to sell my ground floor flat in Parsons Green.Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon but I have just had a yearly service charge invoice – what should I do?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should pay the invoice 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. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

I am a negotiator for a long established estate agent office in Parsons Green where we have experienced a number of leasehold sales derailed due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received conflicting advice from local Parsons Green conveyancing firms. Could you confirm whether the owner of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the buyer can avoid having 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 before, or at the same time as completion of the sale.

Alternatively, it may be possible 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.

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Parsons Green from the perspective of speeding up the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Parsons Green can be bypassed if you appoint lawyers as soon as you market your property and request that they start to put together the leasehold documentation needed by the purchasers’ conveyancers.
• Many landlords or managing agents in Parsons Green charge for supplying management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the actual amount of the charges. The management information can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus reducing delays. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most common cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in Parsons Green.

In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s approval? Have you, for example laid down wooden flooring? Most leases in Parsons Green state that internal structural changes or installing wooden flooring calls for a licence from the Landlord consenting to such alterations. If you fail to have the approvals in place you should not communicate with the landlord without contacting your solicitor in advance.

If you have the benefit of shareholding in the freehold, you should ensure that you hold the original share certificate. Arranging a duplicate share certificate is often a lengthy process and delays many a Parsons Green home move. Where a reissued share certificate is required, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (if applicable) for this as soon as possible.

You may think that you are aware of the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be advisable verify this via your lawyers. A purchaser's lawyer will not be happy to advise their client to to exchange contracts if the remaining number of years is less than 75 years. In the circumstances it is essential at an early stage that you consider whether the lease term requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale.

We expect to complete our sale of a £350000 flat in Parsons Green in just under a week. The freeholder has quoted £360 for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and 3 years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Parsons Green?

For most leasehold sales in Parsons Green conveyancing will involve, queries regarding the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :

• Completing pre-exchange enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in Parsons Green
• 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 Parsons Green leasehold premises is £350. For Parsons Green 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 supply the information.

I am the registered owner of a first floor flat in Parsons Green. Given that I can not reach agreement with the landlord, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal make a decision on the amount payable for the purchase of the freehold?

Where there is a missing landlord or if there is dispute about the premium for a lease extension, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal to determine the price.

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement decision for a Parsons Green property is 66 and 66a Wardo Avenue in November 2012. The Tribunal determined that the sum of £8,048 is payable by the Applicants in respect of the price for the freehold of the property This case was in relation to 2 flats. The remaining number of years on the lease was 93 years and 162 years.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Parsons Green