I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Riddlesdown. Before diving in I would like to find out the remaining lease term.

Assuming the lease is registered - and 99.9% are in Riddlesdown - then the leasehold title will always include the basic details of the lease, namely the date; the term; and the original parties. From a conveyancing perspective such details then enable any prospective buyer and lender to confirm that any lease they are looking at is the one relevant to that title.For any other purpose, such as confirming how long the term was granted for and calculating what is left, then the register should be sufficient on it's own.

I have recently realised that I have 62 years remaining on my flat in Riddlesdown. I now want to extend my lease but my landlord is missing. What should I do?

If you qualify, 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. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have done all that could be expected to find the landlord. In some cases a specialist may be helpful to try and locate and prepare an expert document to be used as evidence that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a solicitor both on proving the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court covering Riddlesdown.

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a two flats in Riddlesdown which have in the region of fifty years left on the lease term. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

There are plenty of short leases in Riddlesdown. The lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the premises for a period of time. As the lease shortens the marketability of the lease decreases and results in it becoming more costly to extend the lease. For this reason it is often a good idea to extend the lease term. Sometimes it is difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease because mortgage lenders may be reluctant to lend money on such properties. Lease enfranchisement can be a difficult process. We advise that you seek professional help from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this arena

I work for a long established estate agent office in Riddlesdown where we have witnessed a number of flat sales put at risk due to short leases. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Riddlesdown conveyancing solicitors. Please can you confirm whether the seller of a flat can start 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 commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser need not have to wait 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or simultaneously with 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.

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Riddlesdown with the intention of expediting the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Riddlesdown can be reduced where you get in touch lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and request that they start to collate the leasehold documentation needed by the purchasers’ lawyers.
• Many landlords or Management Companies in Riddlesdown charge for providing management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should find out the actual amount of the charges. The management pack sought as soon as you have a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The typical amount of time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most usual reason for frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Riddlesdown.
• Some Riddlesdown leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this is the case, it would be prudent to notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is able to meet the annual service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their lawyers.
• If you have had conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved prior to the flat being put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be nervous about purchasing a property where there is a current dispute. You may have to bite the bullet and discharge any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to reveal the dispute as over as opposed to unresolved.
• If you are supposed to have a share in the Management Company, you should ensure that you have the original share certificate. Obtaining a replacement share certificate is often a time consuming process and delays many a Riddlesdown home move. Where a new share certificate is required, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (where applicable) for this at the earliest opportunity.

After months of correspondence we cannot agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Riddlesdown. Can we issue an application to the Residential Property Tribunal Service?

Most definitely. We can put you in touch with a Riddlesdown conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement decision for a Riddlesdown premises is The Woodlands 95 Purley Park Road in April 2009. The Tribunals own valuation produced the fi
gure of £37,912. This case was in relation to 6 flats. The remaining number of years on the lease was 78.32 years.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Riddlesdown - Examples of Questions you should ask before buying

Is there a share of the freehold? Its a good idea to discover as much as possible regarding the company managing the building as they will either make your living at the property much easier or problematic. Being a leasehold owner you are often at the mercy of the managing agents both financially and when it comes to daily issues such as the cleanliness of the communal areas. Enquire of other tenants if they are happy with their service. Finally, investigate as to the dates that the service charges are due to the relevant party and precisely what it includes. Best to be warned whether changing the roof or some other major work is coming up that will be shared between the tenants and will dramatically increase the the maintenance fees or necessitate a one time payment.