I have recently realised that I have 62 years unexpired on my flat in Perivale. I now want to get lease extension but my freeholder is absent. What are my options?

If 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 enable the lease to be granted an extra 90 years by the Court. However, you will be required to prove that you or your lawyers have done all that could be expected to locate the landlord. In some cases a specialist may be helpful to try and locate and to produce an expert document which can be used as proof that the landlord is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a conveyancer in relation to proving the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Perivale.

I have just appointed agents to market my ground floor flat in Perivale.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just had a yearly 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 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 today plan to offer on a house that appears to tick a lot of boxes, at a great figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have just discovered that it's a leasehold as opposed to freehold. I would have thought that there are issues purchasing a leasehold house in Perivale. Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed. Will my lawyers set out the risks of buying a leasehold house in Perivale ?

Most houses in Perivale are freehold rather than leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area can help the conveyancing process. We note that you are buying in Perivale in which case you should be shopping around for a Perivale conveyancing solicitor and check that they have experience in dealing with leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the unexpired lease term. Being a tenant you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions such as obtaining the freeholder’spermission to carry out alterations. It may be necessary to pay a service charge towards the upkeep of the communal areas where the property is part of an estate. Your solicitor will appraise you on the various issues.

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a couple of apartments in Perivale which have about 50 years left on the lease term. should I be concerned?

There are plenty of short leases in Perivale. The lease is a right to use the property for a prescribed time frame. As a lease gets shorter the marketability of the lease reduces and it becomes more expensive to acquire a lease extension. For this reason it is often a good idea to increase the term of the lease. It is often difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease because mortgage lenders less inclined to grant a loan on properties of this type. Lease extension can be a protracted process. We recommend you seek professional assistance from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this arena

I am the proprietor of a first flat in Perivale. In the absence of agreement between myself and the freeholder, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal make a decision on the amount due for a lease extension?

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

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Perivale premises is Ground Floor Flat 79 London Road in September 2012. the Tribunal held that the premium payable for the lease extension should be £7,636 This case related to 1 flat. The the unexpired term as at the valuation date was 74 years.

In relation to leasehold conveyancing in Perivale what are the most frequent lease problems?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Perivale. All leases are unique and drafting errors can result in certain sections are missing. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• A provision to repair to or maintain elements of the building
• A duty to insure the building
• A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
• Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

A defective lease will likely cause problems when trying to sell a property as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Yorkshire Building Society, Chelsea Building Society, and Platform Home Loans Ltd all have very detailed conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is problematic they may refuse to grant the mortgage, obliging the purchaser to pull out.

Perivale Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Questions you should ask before buying

Most Perivale leasehold properties will be liable to pay a service charge for the upkeep of the building invoiced by the freeholder. Should you buy the apartment you will have to pay this amount, usually quarterly during the year. This could differ from two or three hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for large purpose-built blocks. In all likelihood there will be a ground rent to be met annual, ordinarily this is not a exorbitant sum, say approximately £25-£75 but you need to enquire it because occasionally it can be prohibitively expensive. Generally speaking the outlay for major works are not included within maintenance charges, albeit that some managing agents in Perivale ask tenants to contribute towards a sinking fund created for the specific purpose of establishing a fund for larger repairs or maintenance.