I have recently realised that I have 72 years unexpired on my lease in Wandsworth. I now wish to get lease extension but my landlord is can not be found. What are my options?

If 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 granted an extra 90 years by the magistrate. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you have done all that could be expected to track down the freeholder. In some cases an enquiry agent would be useful to conduct investigations and to produce a report to be used as proof that the freeholder can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a conveyancer both on investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Wandsworth.

I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that seems to be perfect, at a reasonable figure which is making it more attractive. I have just found out that it's a leasehold as opposed to freehold. I am assuming that there are particular concerns purchasing a leasehold house in Wandsworth. Conveyancing lawyers have are soon to be instructed. Will my lawyers set out the risks of buying a leasehold house in Wandsworth ?

The majority of houses in Wandsworth are freehold and not leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area can help the conveyancing process. it is apparent that you are purchasing in Wandsworth in which case you should be shopping around for a Wandsworth conveyancing solicitor and check that they are used to dealing with leasehold houses. First you will need to check the unexpired lease term. As a tenant you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want with the house. The lease comes with conditions for example requiring the freeholder’sconsent to conduct changes to the property. You may also be required to pay a contribution towards the upkeep of the estate where the house is located on an estate. Your conveyancer should appraise you on the various issues.

I am a negotiator for a long established estate agency in Wandsworth where we see a number of leasehold sales put at risk as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given conflicting advice from local Wandsworth conveyancing solicitors. Can you shed some light as to whether the seller of a flat can start the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

As long as the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser need not have to sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.

Alternatively, it may be possible to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord 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 buyer.

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Wandsworth from the point of view of saving time on the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Wandsworth can be bypassed if you instruct lawyers as soon as you market your property and ask them to collate the leasehold information needed by the purchasers’ lawyers.
• Many freeholders or Management Companies in Wandsworth charge for providing management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should find out the actual amount of the charges. The management pack can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The average time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most frequent cause of frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Wandsworth.
• If you have carried out any alterations to the property would they have required Landlord’s approval? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Wandsworth leases often stipulate that internal structural changes or addition of wooden flooring necessitate a licence from the Landlord consenting to such alterations. If you dont have the consents to hand you should not communicate with the landlord without checking with your lawyer in the first instance.
• A minority of Wandsworth leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are financially capable of paying the yearly service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their lawyers.
• If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should make sure that you are holding the original share certificate. Arranging a duplicate share certificate is often a time consuming process and delays many a Wandsworth home move. If a duplicate share is required, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (if relevant) for this sooner rather than later.

I own a garden flat in Wandsworth. In the absence of agreement between myself and the freeholder, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal make a decision on the premium payable for the purchase of the freehold?

in cases where there is a absentee freeholder or if there is disagreement about what the lease extension should cost, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 it is possible to make an application to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal to calculate the price.

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement matter before the tribunal for a Wandsworth residence is 4 Galveston Road in August 2012. The Tribunal determined that the price payable in respect of the purchase of the freehold was £22,650. The Tribunal remited this matter back to the Wandsworth County Court for execution of the freehold Transfer Deed. This case was in relation to 2 flats.

What makes a Wandsworth lease problematic?

Leasehold conveyancing in Wandsworth is not unique. All leases are individual and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain provisions are missing. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the building
• Insurance obligations
• A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
• Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

A defective lease can cause issues when trying to sell a property as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. National Westminster Bank, Coventry Building Society, and Aldermore all have very detailed requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is defective they may refuse to provide security, obliging the buyer to withdraw.

I acquired a split level flat in Wandsworth, conveyancing having been completed in 2003. Can you let me have an estimate of the premium that my landlord can legally expect in return for granting a renewal of my lease? Corresponding flats in Wandsworth with an extended lease are worth £220,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £45 invoiced every year. The lease finishes on 21st October 2090

With just 64 years left to run we estimate the price of your lease extension to be between £13,300 and £15,400 plus costs.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to provide a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed investigations. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other concerns that need to be considered and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward based on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.