There are only Fifty years left on my lease in St Mary Cray. I now want to get lease extension but my landlord is missing. What options are available to me?

On the basis that you meet the appropriate requirements, 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 mean that your lease can be extended by the Court. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you have done all that could be expected to track down the freeholder. On the whole an enquiry agent would be useful to carry out a search and prepare an expert document which can be accepted by the court as evidence that the freeholder can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a property lawyer in relation to devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing St Mary Cray.

Planning to exchange soon on a studio apartment in St Mary Cray. Conveyancing lawyers assured me that they will have a report out to me within the next couple of days. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in St Mary Cray should include some of the following:

• Are pets allowed in the flat?

Does the lease prevent you from subletting the flat, or having a home office for business

You must be told what counts as a Nuisance in the lease

The landlord’s rights to access the flat you be made aware that your landlord has rights of access and I know how much notice s/he must provide.

Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your premises and do you know what it means in practice?

The landlord’s obligations to repair and maintain the building. It is important that you know who is responsible for the repair and maintenance of every part of the building

What you can do if a neighbour is in violation of a provision in their lease? For details of the information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in St Mary Cray please enquire of your solicitor in advance of your conveyancing in St Mary Cray

I am looking at a two apartments in St Mary Cray both have about 50 years unexpired on the leases. should I be concerned?

There is no doubt about it. A leasehold apartment in St Mary Cray is a wasting asset as a result of the shortening lease. The nearer the lease gets to its expiry date, the more it reduces the salability of the premises. For most purchasers and banks, leases with under eighty years become less and less marketable. On a more positive 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 a residence 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 St Mary Cray 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 They may agree to a smaller lump sum and an increase in the ground rent, but to shorter extension terms in return. 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 advice for leasehold conveyancing in St Mary Cray from the perspective of saving time on the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in St Mary Cray can be avoided if you get in touch lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and ask them to put together the leasehold information needed by the buyers representatives.
• Many landlords or Management Companies in St Mary Cray charge for providing management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack sought as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. The typical amount of time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most common cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in St Mary Cray.

In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s consent? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Most leases in St Mary Cray state that internal structural changes or installing wooden flooring require a licence issued by the Landlord approving such changes. Should you dont have the paperwork in place do not contact the landlord without checking with your lawyer before hand.

If you have the benefit of shareholding in the Management Company, you should make sure that you are holding the original share document. Obtaining a new share certificate is often a lengthy process and delays many a St Mary Cray conveyancing transaction. Where a reissued share is required, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (where relevant) for this sooner rather than later.

You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but you should double-check via your conveyancers. 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 less than 80 years. It is therefore essential 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 home on the market for sale.

All being well we will complete our sale of a £225000 maisonette in St Mary Cray in just under a week. The management company has quoted £396 for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and 3 years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in St Mary Cray?

St Mary Cray conveyancing on leasehold apartments ordinarily involves fees being invoiced by freeholders :

• Completing conveyancing due diligence enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in St Mary Cray
• Supplying insurance information
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your conveyancer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for St Mary Cray leasehold premises is £350. For St Mary Cray 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.

I have tried to negotiate informally with with my landlord for a lease extension without success. Can a leaseholder apply to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal? Can you recommend a St Mary Cray conveyancing firm to help?

You certainly can. We are happy to put you in touch with a St Mary Cray conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a St Mary Cray premises is 1 Southlands Court Southlands Road in September 2013. The Leasehold Valuation Tribunal determined that the premium to be paid by the tenant on the grant of a new lease, in accordance with section 56 and Schedule 13 of the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 was £30,541 This case was in relation to 1 flat. The the unexpired residue of the current lease was 50.57 years.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in St Mary Cray