I have recently realised that I have Sixty One years left on my lease in Sudbury. I now wish to get lease extension but my landlord is absent. What should I do?

If you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be lengthened by the Court. However, you will be required to prove that you have done all that could be expected to locate the landlord. In some cases a specialist may be helpful to try and locate and prepare a report to be used as evidence that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a property lawyer both on devolving into the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court covering Sudbury.

I today plan to offer on a house that appears to tick a lot of boxes, at a great price which is making it all the more appealing. I have just discovered that the title is leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are issues purchasing a house with a leasehold title in Sudbury. Conveyancing solicitors have not yet been instructed. Will they explain the issues?

Most houses in Sudbury are freehold rather than 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. it is apparent that you are buying in Sudbury in which case you should be shopping around for a Sudbury conveyancing solicitor and be sure 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 tenant you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions for example requiring the landlord’spermission to carry out changes to the property. You may also be required to pay a maintenance charge towards the upkeep of the communal areas where the house is part of an estate. Your conveyancer should report to you on the legal implications.

I am looking at a two apartments in Sudbury both have approximately forty five years left on the leases. Will this present a problem?

There are plenty of short leases in Sudbury. The lease is a right to use the property for a period of time. As the lease shortens the marketability of the lease reduces and results in it becoming more expensive to extend the lease. This is why it is advisable to extend the lease term. Sometimes it is difficult to sell a property with a short lease as mortgage companies may be reluctant to lend money on such properties. Lease enfranchisement can be a difficult process. We advise that you seek professional assistance from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this area

I am a negotiator for a reputable estate agency in Sudbury where we see a few leasehold sales jeopardised as a result of short leases. I have been given contradictory information from local Sudbury conveyancing solicitors. Please can you shed some light as to whether the owner of a flat can initiate the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the proposed purchaser can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.

Alternatively, it may be possible to agree the lease extension with the freeholder either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the purchaser.

What advice can you give us when it comes to choosing a Sudbury conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

When appointing a property lawyer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Sudbury conveyancing firm) it is essential that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We advise that you make enquires with several firms including non Sudbury conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions might be useful:

• How familiar is the practice with lease extension legislation?
• What are the legal fees for lease extension conveyancing?

I have tried to negotiate informally with with my landlord to extend my lease without getting anywhere. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal adjudicate on such issues? Can you recommend a Sudbury conveyancing firm to help?

Absolutely. We are happy to put you in touch with a Sudbury conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a Sudbury residence is Ground Floor Flat 79 London Road in September 2012. the Tribunal held that the premium payable for the lease extension should be £7,636 This case affected 1 flat. The the unexpired residue of the current lease was 74 years.

I own a 1 bedroom flat in Sudbury, conveyancing formalities finalised half a dozen years ago. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Corresponding properties in Sudbury with an extended lease are worth £220,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £60 per annum. The lease ends on 21st October 2098

You have 72 years unexpired we estimate the price of your lease extension to be between £8,600 and £9,800 as well as legals.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to provide the actual costs without more comprehensive due diligence. You should not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt additional issues that need to be considered and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward placing reliance on this information before getting professional advice.