I only have 62 years unexpired on my lease in Morley. I need to extend my lease but my landlord is absent. What are my options?

On the basis that 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 enable the lease to be extended by the Court. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have made all reasonable attempts to locate the landlord. In some cases an enquiry agent would be helpful to try and locate and to produce an expert document to be accepted by the court as proof that the freeholder can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a solicitor in relation to devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing Morley.

Looking forward to exchange soon on a garden flat in Morley. Conveyancing solicitors assured me that they are sending me a report next week. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Morley should include some of the following:

• You should be sent a copy of the lease

Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my garden flat in Morley.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just had a half-yearly maintenance charge invoice – what should I do?

It best that you pay 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 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. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

I've recently bought a leasehold flat in Morley. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to completion of my purchase?

In a situation 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. However, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. It is an essential part of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to be sure 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).

All being well we will complete the disposal of our £325000 garden flat in Morley next Tuesday . The managing agents has quoted £312 for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and previous years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge an administration fee for a leasehold conveyance in Morley?

Morley conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes more often than not involves the buyer’s solicitor submitting questions for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is not legally bound to respond to these enquiries most will be content to assist. They are at liberty invoice a reasonable charge for responding to enquiries 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 situations it is above £800. The administration charge required by the landlord must be sent together with a summary of entitlements and obligations in relation to administration fees, without which the charge is not strictly payable. In reality you have little option but to pay whatever is demanded should you wish to sell the property.

I acquired a split level flat in Morley, conveyancing formalities finalised half a dozen years ago. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Similar flats in Morley with a long lease are worth £239,000. The ground rent is £60 per annum. The lease runs out on 21st October 2084

You have 59 years remaining on your lease we estimate the price of your lease extension to be between £23,800 and £27,400 plus costs.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure in the absence of comprehensive investigations. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt other issues that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action based on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.

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Lease Extensions in Morley