I only have Seventy years remaining on my flat in Ruxley. I need to extend my lease but my landlord is absent. What options are available to me?

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 mean that your lease can be lengthened by the magistrate. You will be obliged to prove that you or your lawyers have used your best endeavours to locate the landlord. In some cases a specialist should be helpful to try and locate and to produce an expert document which can be used as evidence that the freeholder can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a solicitor both on investigating the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Ruxley.

I've found a house that seems to tick a lot of boxes, at a great figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have subsequently discovered that it's a leasehold as opposed to freehold. I am assuming that there are particular concerns purchasing a leasehold house in Ruxley. Conveyancing advisers have are soon to be instructed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Ruxley are freehold rather than leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local solicitor used to dealing with such properties who can help the conveyancing process. We note that you are buying in Ruxley in which case you should be looking for a Ruxley conveyancing solicitor and check that they have experience in transacting on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the number of years remaining. As a lessee you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want with the house. The lease comes with conditions such as obtaining the landlord’spermission to carry out alterations. It may be necessary to pay a contribution towards the maintenance of the estate where the property is part of an estate. Your lawyer should report to you on the legal implications.

Last month I purchased a leasehold property in Ruxley. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before my ownership?

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. However, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. It is an essential part 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).

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Ruxley from the point of view of saving time on the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Ruxley can be avoided if you instruct lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and ask them to collate the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers lawyers.
• A minority of Ruxley leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this is the case, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are financially capable of paying the yearly 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 solicitors.
• If you have had conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is essential that these are resolved prior to the flat being marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be warry about purchasing a flat where there is an ongoing dispute. You may need to swallow your pride 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 prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to present the dispute as historic rather than unsettled.
• If you hold a share in a the freehold, you should ensure that you have the original share certificate. Obtaining a replacement share certificate is often a lengthy formality and slows down many a Ruxley home move. Where a duplicate share is needed, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (where relevant) for this at the earliest opportunity.
• You may think that you are aware of the number of years left on your lease but it would be wise to double-check by asking your solicitors. A purchaser's lawyer will not be happy to advise their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the remaining number of years is below 75 years. In the circumstances it is important at an as soon as possible that you consider whether the lease term requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

We have reached the end of our tether in seeking a lease extension in Ruxley. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal adjudicate on premiums?

in cases where there is a missing landlord or where there is disagreement 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 arrive at the premium.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Ruxley flat is 103a Footscray Road in January 2014. The tribunal determines that the premium payable for the extended lease should be £34,500 according to the expert witness valuation calculation This case affected 1 flat.

What makes a Ruxley lease problematic?

Leasehold conveyancing in Ruxley is not unique. Most leases are individual and legal mistakes in the legal wording can result in certain provisions are not included. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• A provision to repair to or maintain parts of the premises
• Insurance obligations
• 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

You could encounter difficulties when selling your property if you have a defective lease as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Barclays , The Royal Bank of Scotland, 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 does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to grant the mortgage, obliging the buyer to pull out.

I acquired a 1 bedroom flat in Ruxley, conveyancing formalities finalised 7 years ago. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Corresponding properties in Ruxley with over 90 years remaining are worth £230,000. The ground rent is £45 charged once a year. The lease finishes on 21st October 2102

With just 76 years remaining on your lease we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £8,600 and £9,800 plus costs.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs without more comprehensive investigations. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt additional concerns that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward based on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.