Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in South Hackney. Before I get started I require certainty as to the remaining lease term.

Assuming the lease is registered - and most are in South Hackney - then the leasehold title will always include the short particulars 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.

There are only 62 years left on my flat in South Hackney. I now wish to extend my lease but my landlord is absent. What are my options?

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 an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be extended by the Court. However, you will be required to prove that you have done all that could be expected to locate the freeholder. For most situations a specialist would be helpful to try and locate and to produce an expert document to be used as evidence that the landlord can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a solicitor in relation to investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court covering South Hackney.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold house in South Hackney. Conveyancing and Chelsea Building Society mortgage went though with no issue. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1992. The conveyancing solicitor in South Hackney who previously acted has long since retired.Do I pay?

The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to be sure that this person is in fact the new freeholder. There is no need to incur the fees of a South Hackney conveyancing firm to do this as it can be done on-line for £3. You should note that in any event, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

I've recently bought a leasehold house in South Hackney. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

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).

What advice can you give us when it comes to appointing a South Hackney conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a conveyancer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a South Hackney conveyancing practice) it is most important that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We advise that you speak with several firms including non South Hackney conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be of use:

• What volume of lease extensions has the firm completed in South Hackney in the last twenty four months?

I have attempted and failed to negotiate with my landlord for a lease extension without any joy. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal decide on such matters? Can you recommend a South Hackney conveyancing firm to help?

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

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement case for a South Hackney premises is 150 Amhurst Road in December 2013. The tribunal concluded that the premium to be paid by the applicant for the enfranchisement of the subject property was £43,500. This case affected 4 flats. The unexpired term was 90 (or thereabouts).