Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only 72 years remaining on my flat in Markyate. I am keen to get lease extension but my freeholder is absent. What should I do?

If you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be extended by the Court. However, you will be required to prove that you have done all that could be expected to locate the landlord. For most situations a specialist should be useful to carry out a search and prepare an expert document to be used as proof that the landlord is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a property lawyer in relation to investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing Markyate.

Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my garden apartment in Markyate.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just had a yearly service charge demand – what should I do?

The sensible thing to do is pay 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 today plan to offer on a house that appears to meet my requirements, at a reasonable price which is making it all the more appealing. I have just found out that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are particular concerns buying a house with a leasehold title in Markyate. Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been appointed. Will my lawyers set out the risks of buying a leasehold house in Markyate ?

The majority of houses in Markyate are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can assist with the conveyancing process. it is apparent that you are purchasing in Markyate in which case you should be shopping around for a Markyate conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they are used to advising on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. Being a lessee you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions for example requiring the landlord’sconsent to carry out alterations. You may also be required to pay a maintenance charge towards the maintenance of the communal areas where the property is located on an estate. Your conveyancer will advise you fully on all the issues.

I am employed by a busy estate agency in Markyate where we have experienced a few leasehold sales put at risk as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Markyate conveyancing firms. Could you shed some light as to whether the owner of a flat can start the lease extension process 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 kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the buyer 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 disposal of the property.

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.

Are there frequently found deficiencies that you encounter in leases for Markyate properties?

Leasehold conveyancing in Markyate is not unique. Most leases are unique and drafting errors can result in certain clauses are erroneous. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• A provision to repair to or maintain elements of the premises
• Insurance obligations
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

You may encounter difficulties when selling your property if you have a defective lease as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Santander, Chelsea Building Society, and Nottingham Building Society all have express conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is problematic they may refuse to grant the mortgage, obliging the buyer to withdraw.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Markyate - Sample of Queries before buying

Who are the managing agents? If a Markyate lease has no more than 80 years it will affect the value of the property. It is worth checking with your bank that they are willing to to proceed given the lease term. Leases with fewer than 80 years remaining means that you will probably require a lease extension at some point and you need to have some idea of how much this will be. For most Markyatelease extensions you would be be obliged to have been the owner of the property for two years in order to be entitled to extend the lease. Many Markyate leasehold properties will incur a service bill for maintenance of the block levied on behalf of the management company. Where you purchase the property you will have to meet this liability, usually quarterly during the year. This may vary from a few hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for blocks with lifts and large common areas. In all likelihood there will be a rentcharge to be met annual, this is usually not a exorbitant figure, say about £25-£75 but you need to enquire as on occasion it can be many hundreds of pounds.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Markyate