I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Winchmore Hill. Before I get started I require certainty as to the unexpired term of the lease.

Assuming the lease is recorded at the land registry - and most are in Winchmore Hill - then the leasehold title will always include the short particulars of the lease, namely the date; the term; and the original parties. From a conveyancing perspective such details then enable any prospective buyer and lender to confirm that any lease they are looking at is the one relevant to that title.For any other purpose, such as confirming how long the term was granted for and calculating what is left, then the register should be sufficient on it's own.

I have recently realised that I have 72 years left on my flat in Winchmore Hill. I need to extend my lease but my freeholder is can not be found. What options are available to me?

If you qualify, 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 lengthened by the magistrate. You will be obliged to prove that you or your lawyers have used your best endeavours to track down the landlord. On the whole a specialist would be helpful to conduct investigations and prepare a report which can be accepted by the court as proof that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a solicitor both on devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Winchmore Hill.

I am attracted to a couple of flats in Winchmore Hill both have in the region of forty five years unexpired on the leases. Will this present a problem?

There is no doubt about it. A leasehold flat in Winchmore Hill is a deteriorating asset as a result of the shortening lease. The closer the lease gets to its expiry date, the more it reduces the salability of the premises. The majority of purchasers and lenders, leases with under 75 years become less and less marketable. On a more upbeat 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 Winchmore Hill 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 the agreed 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 Winchmore Hill from the perspective of expediting the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Winchmore Hill can be bypassed if you appoint lawyers the minute you market your property and ask them to collate the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers representatives.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s consent? Have you, for example laid down wooden flooring? Most leases in Winchmore Hill state that internal structural alterations or addition of wooden flooring necessitate a licence issued by the Landlord consenting to such works. Where you dont have the paperwork in place do not contact the landlord without contacting your conveyancer in advance.
• A minority of Winchmore Hill leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, it would be prudent to notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are able to meet 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 solicitors.
• If you are supposed to have a share in the Management Company, you should ensure that you hold the original share certificate. Organising a new share certificate is often a time consuming formality and delays many a Winchmore Hill conveyancing deal. Where a new share certificate is necessary, do contact the company officers or managing agents (where applicable) for this sooner rather than later.
• You may think that you are aware of the number of years left on your lease but you should double-check by asking your lawyers. A buyer’s conveyancer will be unlikely to recommend their client to where the remaining number of years is under 80 years. It is therefore important at an as soon as possible that you consider whether the lease for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale.

All being well we will complete the disposal of our £ 125000 garden flat in Winchmore Hill next Wednesday . The management company has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and 3 years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in Winchmore Hill?

Winchmore Hill conveyancing on leasehold apartments nine out of ten times involves administration charges invoiced by freeholders :

• Answering pre-contract questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Winchmore Hill
• 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 Winchmore Hill leasehold property is £350. For Winchmore Hill 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.

My wife and I have hit a brick wall in trying to purchase the freehold in Winchmore Hill. Can this matter be resolved via the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal?

Most certainly. We can put you in touch with a Winchmore Hill conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Winchmore Hill property is First Floor Flat 109 Lyndhurst Road in May 2010. Following a vesting order by Edmonton County Court on 29th October 2009 the Tribunal decided on a figure of £5,012 for a lease extension. This case affected 1 flat. The unexpired lease term was 81.79 years.

Winchmore Hill Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Queries Prior to buying

Many Winchmore Hill leasehold flats will have a service charge for the upkeep of the building levied by the freeholder. Where you buy the flat you will have to pay this liability, normally periodically during the year. This could vary from a couple of hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for blocks with lifts and large communal areas. In all probability there will be a rentcharge for you to pay annual, normally this is not a exorbitant figure, say about £50-£100 but you need to check it because on occasion it can be prohibitively expensive. How many of the leaseholders are in arrears for their maintenance charge payments?