There are only 72 years remaining on my flat in South Harrow. I am keen to extend my lease but my landlord is absent. What are my options?

If you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be extended by the magistrate. You will be obliged to prove that you have done all that could be expected to locate the landlord. On the whole an enquiry agent may be helpful to conduct investigations and to produce a report which can be used as proof that the freeholder can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a property lawyer both on investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing South Harrow.

I've found a house that appears to meet my requirements, at a reasonable figure which is making it more attractive. I have subsequently been informed that the title is leasehold as opposed to freehold. I would have thought that there are particular concerns purchasing a leasehold house in South Harrow. Conveyancing advisers have are about to be appointed. Will they explain the issues?

Most houses in South Harrow are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor used to dealing with such properties who can assist with the conveyancing process. We note that you are purchasing in South Harrow in which case you should be looking for a South Harrow conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they are used to advising on leasehold houses. First 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 comes with conditions for example obtaining the landlord’spermission to conduct alterations. It may be necessary to pay a contribution towards the upkeep of the communal areas where the property is located on an estate. Your conveyancer will advise you fully on all the issues.

I am looking at a couple of flats in South Harrow both have approximately fifty years unexpired on the lease term. Will this present a problem?

There is no doubt about it. A leasehold flat in South Harrow is a deteriorating asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The nearer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it adversely affects the marketability of the premises. For most purchasers and lenders, leases with less than eighty years become less and less attractive. On a more upbeat note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the property for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of premises with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with South Harrow conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. More often than not it is possible to negotiate informally with the freeholder to extend the lease You may find he or she is happy to negotiate informally and willing to consider your offer straight off, without having to involve anyone else. This will save you time and money and it could help you reach a lower price on the lease. You need to ensure that any new terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in South Harrow from the perspective of expediting the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in South Harrow can be bypassed if you appoint lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and ask them to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers representatives.
• The majority freeholders or Management Companies in South Harrow levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the fee that they propose to charge. The management information can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus reducing delays. The typical amount of time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most usual cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in South Harrow.

In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s permission? Have you, for example laid down wooden flooring? South Harrow leases often stipulate that internal structural changes or installing wooden flooring necessitate a licence from the Landlord consenting to such works. Should you dont have the paperwork to hand you should not communicate with the landlord without checking with your solicitor first.

If there is a history of any disputes with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are settled prior to the flat being put on the market. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where a dispute is unsettled. You may need to swallow your pride and discharge any arrears of service charge or resolve 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 better to reveal the dispute as historic as opposed to unresolved.

You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but it would be advisable verify this by asking your conveyancers. A buyer’s conveyancer will be unlikely to recommend their client to to exchange contracts if the remaining number of years is under 80 years. It is therefore important at an as soon as possible that you identify whether the lease for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale.

We expect to complete the disposal of our £200000 flat in South Harrow in just under a week. The landlords agents has quoted £396 for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and 3 years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in South Harrow?

For most leasehold sales in South Harrow conveyancing will involve, questions about the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :

• Completing conveyancing due diligence enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in South Harrow
• 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 South Harrow leasehold premises is £350. For South Harrow 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 answers.

After months of correspondence we are unable to agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in South Harrow. Does the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal have jurisdiction to calculate the appropriate figures?

Most definitely. We are happy to put you in touch with a South Harrow conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a South Harrow premises is GFF 1 Holyrood Avenue in May 2014. The Tenant wished to acquire a new (extended) lease and applied to the Willesden County Court who granted a vesting order on 20* March2013. The Tribunal decied that the premium to be paid was £9,062 This case was in relation to 1 flat. The the unexpired residue of the current lease was 79 years.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in South Harrow