Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only Fifty years remaining on my lease in Milnthorpe. I now wish to extend my lease but my landlord is missing. What are my options?

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. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you have made all reasonable attempts to locate the freeholder. On the whole a specialist may be useful to conduct investigations and prepare an expert document to be accepted by the court as evidence that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a property lawyer both on proving the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Milnthorpe.

I have just started marketing my 2 bed apartment in Milnthorpe.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just had a quarterly maintenance charge demand – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should clear 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 managing agents will not acknowledge the buyer unless 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.

Back In 2005, I bought a leasehold house in Milnthorpe. Conveyancing and Lloyds TSB Bank mortgage organised. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1995. The conveyancing practitioner in Milnthorpe who acted for me is not around.Do I pay?

First make enquiries of the Land Registry to be sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. It is not necessary to instruct a Milnthorpe conveyancing firm to do this as it can be done on-line for £3. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I am attracted to a couple of maisonettes in Milnthorpe both have approximately 50 years unexpired on the lease term. Do I need to be concerned?

A lease is a right to use the property for a period of time. As the lease gets shorter the marketability of the lease reduces and results in it becoming more costly to extend the lease. This is why it is generally wise to extend the lease term. It is often difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease as mortgage companies may be reluctant to lend money on such properties. Lease enfranchisement can be a protracted process. We advise that you get professional help from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this area

All being well we will complete the disposal of our £450000 flat in Milnthorpe in just under a week. The managing agents has quoted £384 for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and previous years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in Milnthorpe?

Milnthorpe conveyancing on leasehold flats usually results in fees being raised by freeholders :

• Completing conveyancing due diligence questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Milnthorpe
• Supplying insurance information
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your solicitor will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Milnthorpe leasehold premises is £350. For Milnthorpe 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.

Milnthorpe Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Questions you should ask before buying

Who takes charge for maintaining and repairing the building? For most Milnthorpe leaseholds the outlay for major works are not built into the service charges, although there some managing agents in Milnthorpe ask leaseholders to pay into a sinking fund and this is used to offset against larger works. It is important to be aware if fixing the lift or some other major work is due in the foreseeable future that will be shared amongst the tenants and may well materially increase the the maintenance charges or necessitate a one time payment.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Milnthorpe