Recently asked questions relating to Wood Green leasehold conveyancing
There are only Fifty years unexpired on my lease in Wood Green. I need to extend my lease but my landlord is missing. What are my options?
On the basis that 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 an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be lengthened by the Court. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have made all reasonable attempts to locate the lessor. For most situations a specialist would be helpful to carry out a search and prepare a report to be accepted by the court as evidence that the freeholder can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a solicitor in relation to proving the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court overseeing Wood Green.
I’m about to sell my garden apartment in Wood Green.Conveyancing has not commenced but I have just received a half-yearly service charge demand – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?
It best that you discharge 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 management companies 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.
I own a leasehold house in Wood Green. Conveyancing and Britannia mortgage are in place. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1992. The conveyancing solicitor in Wood Green who previously acted has now retired.Do I pay?
First make enquiries of HMLR to be sure that this person is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Wood Green conveyancing practitioner 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 rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.
I've recently bought a leasehold house in Wood Green. Do I have any liability for service charges relating to a period prior to completion of my purchase?
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. Strange as it may seem, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to ensure 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).
We expect to complete our sale of a £300000 garden flat in Wood Green next week. The managing agents has quoted £312 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and previous years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge an administration fee for a flat conveyance in Wood Green?
Wood Green conveyancing on leasehold flats often involves the purchaser’s solicitor submitting enquiries for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is not legally bound to address these enquiries most will be willing to do so. They may invoice a reasonable administration fee for responding to questions or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average fee for the information that you are referring to is £350, in some cases it is in excess of £800. The administration charge demanded by the landlord must be sent together with a summary of entitlements and obligations in respect of administration fees, otherwise the charge is not strictly payable. In reality you have no choice but to pay whatever is requested of you should you wish to sell the property.
Following months of negotiations we simply can't agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Wood Green. Can we issue an application to the Residential Property Tribunal Service?
Absolutely. We are happy to put you in touch with a Wood Green conveyancing firm who can help.
An example of a Lease Extension case for a Wood Green flat 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 was in relation to 1 flat. The the unexpired residue of the current lease was 81.79 years.
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