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Recently asked questions relating to Whitechapel leasehold conveyancing

I have recently realised that I have Fifty years unexpired on my flat in Whitechapel. I am keen to extend my lease but my freeholder is can not be found. What are my options?

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 enable the lease to be lengthened by the Court. You will be obliged to prove that you have made all reasonable attempts to find the freeholder. For most situations an enquiry agent should be useful to carry out a search and to produce an expert document to be accepted by the court as proof that the landlord can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a conveyancer both on devolving into the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Whitechapel.

Back In 2007, I bought a leasehold house in Whitechapel. Conveyancing and Barclays mortgage are in place. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the freehold. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1998. The conveyancing solicitor in Whitechapel who previously acted has long since retired.What should I do?

First contact the Land Registry to be sure that this person is in fact the new freeholder. There is no need to instruct a Whitechapel conveyancing solicitor to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for £3. Rest assured that regardless, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

Last month I purchased a leasehold property in Whitechapel. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

In a situation 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. It is an essential part 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).

What are your top tips when it comes to finding a Whitechapel conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a property lawyer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Whitechapel conveyancing firm) it is most important that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We suggested that you make enquires with two or three firms including non Whitechapel conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be of use:

  • How experienced is the practice with lease extension legislation?
  • Can they put you in touch with client in Whitechapel who can give a testimonial?

  • Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Whitechapel from the perspective of saving time on the sale process?

    • Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Whitechapel can be bypassed where you get in touch lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and ask them to collate the leasehold documentation needed by the purchasers’ lawyers.
    • The majority landlords or Management Companies in Whitechapel levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the actual amount of the charges. The management pack can be applied for as soon as you have a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The average time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most usual reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Whitechapel.
  • If you have had any disputes with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved prior to the flat being marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where a dispute is ongoing. You may need to swallow your pride and discharge any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal particulars of the dispute to the buyers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as over rather than ongoing.
  • If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should ensure that you have the original share document. Arranging a re-issued share certificate can be a lengthy process and slows down many a Whitechapel home move. If a new share certificate is required, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (if applicable) for this as soon as possible.
  • You may think that you are aware of the number of years remaining on your lease but you should verify this via your solicitors. A purchaser's conveyancer will be unlikely to recommend their client to where the lease term is under 75 years. It is therefore essential at an early stage that you identify whether the lease term for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale.

  • Following years of dialogue we cannot agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Whitechapel. Can we issue an application to the Residential Property Tribunal Service?

    in cases where there is a absentee freeholder or if there is disagreement about what the lease extension should cost, under the relevant legislation you can apply to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) to determine the price.

    An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement matter before the tribunal for a Whitechapel flat is 1-41 Royal Tower Lodge 40 Cartwright Street in April 2013. the tribunal adding the agreed value of capitalised ground rents and the reversion the price to be paid for the freehold was £1,187,000 This case was in relation to 41 flats. The the number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 107 years.