There are only 72 years left on my lease in St Johns. I now wish to extend my lease but my freeholder is absent. What options are available to me?

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 mean that your lease can be granted an extra 90 years by the magistrate. You will be obliged to prove that you or your lawyers have made all reasonable attempts to locate the landlord. In some cases a specialist would be useful to carry out a search and to produce a report to be accepted by the court as proof that the landlord can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a property lawyer both on devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court covering St Johns.

I've found a house that seems to tick a lot of boxes, at a reasonable price which is making it more attractive. I have subsequently been informed that the title is leasehold as opposed to freehold. I am assuming that there are issues purchasing a leasehold house in St Johns. Conveyancing solicitors have are soon to be appointed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in St Johns are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area can help the conveyancing process. We note that you are buying in St Johns so you should seriously consider looking for a St Johns conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they have experience in dealing with leasehold houses. First 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 for example obtaining the landlord’sconsent to carry out changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a contribution towards the upkeep of the estate where the house is located on an estate. Your lawyer should appraise you on the various issues.

I am looking at a two maisonettes in St Johns which have about fifty years unexpired on the lease term. should I be concerned?

A lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the premises for a prescribed time frame. As the lease gets shorter the saleability of the lease decreases and it becomes more costly to extend the lease. For this reason it is generally wise to increase the term of the lease. It is often difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease as mortgage lenders less inclined to grant a loan on such properties. Lease extension can be a difficult process. We recommend you seek professional assistance from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this area

I've recently bought a leasehold property in St Johns. Do I have any liability for service charges relating to a period prior to my ownership?

Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee 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. A critical element of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to be sure 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).

Can you offer any advice when it comes to choosing a St Johns conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

When appointing a conveyancer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a St Johns conveyancing firm) it is most important that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We advise that you talk with two or three firms including non St Johns conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions could be helpful:

• If the firm is not ALEP accredited then what is the reason?
• Can they put you in touch with client in St Johns who can give a testimonial?

Following years of correspondence we cannot agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in St Johns. Does the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal have jurisdiction to calculate the appropriate figures?

Where there is a missing landlord or where there is disagreement about the premium for a lease extension, under the relevant legislation it is possible to make an application to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal to assess the sum to be paid.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a St Johns residence is 73 Walerand Road in August 2012. the result of the findings of the Tribunal led to a premium to be paid for the extended lease in respect of Flat 73 in the sum of £10,040. The premium applicable in respect of Flat 85 was £5,710. This case affected 2 flats. The remaining number of years on the lease was 72 years.

I own a leasehold flat in St Johns, conveyancing formalities finalised in 2011. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Corresponding properties in St Johns with an extended lease are worth £182,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £60 levied per year. The lease runs out on 21st October 2076

You have 50 years remaining on your lease we estimate the premium for your lease extension to span between £38,000 and £44,000 plus costs.

The figure above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of detailed investigations. You should not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be other concerns that need to be taken into account and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action based on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.