I have just started marketing my basement flat in Wembley Park.Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon but I have just had a yearly service charge demand – Do I pay up?

The sensible thing to do is clear the service charge as normal because all ground rent and service charges will be apportioned on completion, so you will be reimbursed by the buyer for the period running from after the completion date to the next payment date. Most managing agents will not acknowledge the buyer until the service charges have been paid and are up to date so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

Back In 2008, I bought a leasehold house in Wembley Park. Conveyancing and Nationwide Building Society mortgage are in place. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1992. The conveyancing solicitor in Wembley Park who acted for me is not around.What should I do?

The first thing you should do is make enquiries of the Land Registry to make sure that this person is indeed the new freeholder. It is not necessary to instruct a Wembley Park conveyancing solicitor to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for a few pound. You should note that in any event, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a two apartments in Wembley Park both have approximately fifty years left on the leases. Do I need to be concerned?

A lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the premises for a period of time. As the lease shortens the saleability of the lease decreases and it becomes more expensive to acquire a lease extension. For this reason it is generally wise to increase the term of the lease. Sometimes it is difficult to sell a property with a short lease because mortgage lenders may be unwilling to lend money on properties of this type. Lease extension can be a difficult process. We advise that you seek professional help from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this area

I work for a long established estate agency in Wembley Park where we have experienced a number of leasehold sales put at risk as a result of short leases. I have been given contradictory information from local Wembley Park conveyancing solicitors. Please can you shed some light as to whether the seller of a flat can initiate the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

Provided that 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. This means that the proposed purchaser need not have to wait 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or at the same time as completion of the sale.

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 purchaser.

What are your top tips when it comes to choosing a Wembley Park conveyancing firm to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

If you are instructing a conveyancer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Wembley Park conveyancing firm) it is most important that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We suggested that you talk with two or three firms including non Wembley Park conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions might be of use:

• If the firm is not ALEP accredited then what is the reason?

I have attempted and failed to negotiate with my landlord to extend my lease without success. Can one make an application to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal? Can you recommend a Wembley Park conveyancing firm to help?

if there is a missing freeholder or where there is dispute 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 amount due.

An example of a Lease Extension case for a Wembley Park flat is Ground Floor Flat 69 Clifton Avenue in March 2012. the Tribunal determined that the premium payable for the new lease was £5,932 This case was in relation to 1 flat. The unexpired term was 76.06 years.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Wembley Park