I have recently realised that I have Sixty One years remaining on my flat in Lynmouth. I need to extend my lease but my freeholder is can not be found. What options are available to me?

If 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 for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be granted an extra 90 years by the magistrate. You will be obliged to prove that you have made all reasonable attempts to find the landlord. In some cases a specialist may be helpful to try and locate and prepare an expert document which can be accepted by the court as proof that the freeholder can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a property lawyer in relation to devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Lynmouth.

Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my 2 bed apartment in Lynmouth.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just had a quarterly maintenance charge demand – what should I do?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should clear the invoice 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. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

Back In 2006, I bought a leasehold flat in Lynmouth. Conveyancing and Accord Mortgages Ltd mortgage organised. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1994. The conveyancing practitioner in Lynmouth who previously acted has long since retired.What should I do?

First contact HMLR to be sure that this person is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. You do not need to instruct a Lynmouth conveyancing practitioner to do this as it can be done on-line for less than a fiver. 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.

I am employed by a reputable estate agent office in Lynmouth where we have witnessed a few leasehold sales jeopardised due to short leases. I have been given contradictory information from local Lynmouth conveyancing firms. Could you clarify whether the vendor of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

As long as the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser can avoid having to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done prior to, or at the same time as completion of the sale.

Alternatively, it may be possible to agree the lease extension with the freeholder 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.

Completion in due on the sale of our £150000 apartment in Lynmouth next Monday . The landlords agents has quoted £408 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and 3 years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Lynmouth?

Lynmouth conveyancing on leasehold apartments usually necessitates administration charges raised by landlords agents :

• Answering pre-contract enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in Lynmouth
• Copies of the building insurance and schedule
• 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 Lynmouth leasehold premises is £350. For Lynmouth 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 required to provide the information.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Lynmouth - A selection of Queries Prior to buying

Does this lease have in excess of 80 years unexpired? For many Lynmouth leaseholds the outlay for major works tend not to be included within maintenance charges, although some managing agents in Lynmouth ask leaseholders to contribute towards a reserve fund created for the specific purpose of establishing a fund for major repairs or maintenance. What is the annual maintenance fee and ground rent?

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Lynmouth