I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Mildmay. Before I set the wheels in motion I require certainty as to the unexpired term of the lease.

If the lease is registered - and 99.9% are in Mildmay - then the leasehold title will always include the basic details 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.

There are only Fifty years remaining on my lease in Mildmay. I now want to get lease extension but my landlord is can not be found. What should I do?

On the basis that 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 enable the lease to be lengthened by the Court. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have made all reasonable attempts to locate the landlord. In some cases a specialist would be helpful to carry out a search and to produce a report to be accepted by the court as evidence that the landlord is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer both on proving the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Mildmay.

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a couple of maisonettes in Mildmay both have approximately 50 years left on the leases. Will this present a problem?

There is no doubt about it. A leasehold flat in Mildmay is a deteriorating asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The nearer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it reduces the marketability of the property. The majority of buyers and mortgage companies, leases with under 75 years become less and less attractive. 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 premises 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 Mildmay conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. A more straightforward and quicker method of extending would be to contact your landlord directly and sound him out on the prospect of extending 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 any new 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 Mildmay with the purpose of speeding up the sale process?

• Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Mildmay can be bypassed if you get in touch lawyers the minute you market your property and request that they start to put together the leasehold documentation needed by the buyers representatives.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s approval? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Most leases in Mildmay state that internal structural alterations or laying down wooden flooring require a licence issued by the Landlord consenting to such works. If you fail to have the approvals to hand you should not communicate with the landlord without contacting your conveyancer first.
• A minority of Mildmay leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, it would be prudent to notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. Any 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 lawyers.
• If you have had any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are settled before the property is marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be warry about purchasing a flat where there is an ongoing dispute. You may have to bite the bullet and pay 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 are still duty bound to disclose particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to present the dispute as historic as opposed to ongoing.
• If you have the benefit of shareholding in the Management Company, you should make sure that you are holding the original share certificate. Obtaining a new share certificate is often a time consuming process and frustrates many a Mildmay home move. Where a new share is necessary, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (where applicable) for this as soon as possible.

What makes a Mildmay lease unacceptable for security purposes?

Leasehold conveyancing in Mildmay is not unique. All leases is drafted differently and drafting errors can sometimes mean that certain sections are erroneous. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• A provision to repair to or maintain parts of the property
• A duty to insure the building
• A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
• Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

A defective lease will likely cause issues when trying to sell a property primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Halifax, Leeds Building Society, and Platform Home Loans Ltd all have express requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is defective they may refuse to provide security, forcing the buyer to withdraw.

Mildmay Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Queries before Purchasing

If a Mildmay lease has less than 80 years it will impact the value of the flat. Check with your mortgage company that they are content with the length of the lease. 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. Remember, in most cases you would be be obliged to have been the owner of the premises for 24 months before you are entitled to extend the lease. Are there any major works in the near future that will likely increase the maintenance charges?