I only have Seventy years remaining on my flat in Northfield. I am keen to extend my lease but my landlord is missing. What should I do?

If you meet the appropriate requirements, 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 Court. You will be obliged to prove that you have done all that could be expected to find the freeholder. On the whole an enquiry agent should be useful to carry out a search and prepare a report which can be used as proof that the freeholder can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer in relation to devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Northfield.

Expecting to complete next month on a leasehold property in Northfield. Conveyancing lawyers have said that they will have a report out to me within the next couple of days. What should I be looking out for?

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

• The unexpired lease term You should be advised as what happens when the lease expires, and aware of the importance of not letting the lease term falling below eighty years

The total extent of the property. This will be the property itself but may incorporate a loft or basement if appropriate.

Defining your rights in relation to common areas in the block.For example, does the lease provide for a right of way over a path or hallways?

Ground rent - how much and when you need to pay, and also know whether this is subject to change

An explanation as to the provision in the lease to pay service charges - with regard to both the building, and the more general rights a leaseholder has

What options are open to you if a neighbour is in violation of a provision in their lease?

What the implications are if you breach a clause of your lease? For details of the information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Northfield please enquire of your solicitor in ahead of your conveyancing in Northfield

I am attracted to a couple of maisonettes in Northfield both have approximately 50 years unexpired on the leases. should I be concerned?

There are plenty of short leases in Northfield. The lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the premises for a prescribed time frame. As the lease gets shorter the marketability of the lease reduces and it becomes more expensive to extend the lease. For this reason it is advisable to increase the term of the lease. More often than not it is difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease because mortgage lenders less inclined to grant a loan on properties of this type. Lease extension can be a difficult process. We recommend you get professional help from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this area

If all goes to plan we aim to complete the sale of our £500000 maisonette in Northfield in 8 days. The freeholder has quoted £300 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and previous years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge an administration fee for a flat conveyance in Northfield?

For the majority of leasehold sales in Northfield conveyancing will involve, questions about the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :

• Addressing pre-contract enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in Northfield
• Supplying insurance information
• 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 Northfield leasehold property is £350. For Northfield 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.

What are the frequently found problems that you witness in leases for Northfield properties?

Leasehold conveyancing in Northfield is not unique. All leases is drafted differently and drafting errors can result in certain clauses are wrong. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• A provision to repair to or maintain elements of the building
• A duty to insure the building
• A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

A defective lease can cause issues when trying to sell a property primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Halifax, The Mortgage Works, and Nottingham Building Society all have very detailed conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is defective they may refuse to grant the mortgage, obliging the buyer to pull out.

I am the registered owner of a 2 bed flat in Northfield, conveyancing formalities finalised 6 years ago. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Comparable properties in Northfield with over 90 years remaining are worth £248,000. The ground rent is £50 levied per year. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2078

With 53 years remaining on your lease the likely cost is going to span between £29,500 and £34,000 plus costs.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure without more detailed investigations. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt additional concerns that need to be considered and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not take any other action placing reliance on this information before getting professional advice.

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Lease Extensions in Northfield