There are only 72 years left on my lease in Penistone. I now wish to extend my lease but my landlord is can not be found. What are my options?

On the basis that you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be granted an extra 90 years by the Court. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have made all reasonable attempts to find the freeholder. On the whole an enquiry agent should be helpful to conduct investigations and prepare a report which can be used as proof that the freeholder can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a conveyancer both on investigating the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court covering Penistone.

I’m about to sell my garden flat in Penistone.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just received a quarterly service charge invoice – Do I pay up?

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 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.

What advice can you give us when it comes to appointing a Penistone conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

When appointing a conveyancer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Penistone conveyancing firm) it is most important that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We suggested that you speak with several firms including non Penistone conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions might be useful:

• If they are not ALEP accredited then why not?
• What are the costs for lease extension work?

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Penistone from the perspective of saving time on the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Penistone can be reduced where you get in touch lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the purchasers’ solicitors.
• Many landlords or Management Companies in Penistone charge for supplying management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should find out the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack can be applied for as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. The typical amount of time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most common reason for frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Penistone.
• If you have carried out any alterations to the premises would they have required Landlord’s approval? Have you, for example laid down wooden flooring? Penistone leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or installing wooden flooring require a licence issued by the Landlord acquiescing to such works. Where you fail to have the paperwork in place you should not contact the landlord without checking with your lawyer in advance.
• If you have had conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are settled before the property is marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where there is a current dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to pay any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal details of the dispute to the buyers, but it is clearly preferable to present the dispute as historic rather than unresolved.
• If you have the benefit of shareholding in the freehold, you should make sure that you hold the original share document. Organising a duplicate share certificate can be a time consuming formality and frustrates many a Penistone conveyancing deal. Where a new share is necessary, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (where relevant) for this sooner rather than later.

All being well we will complete the sale of our £ 425000 flat in Penistone in nine days. The management company has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and previous years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in Penistone?

Penistone conveyancing on leasehold flats normally requires the buyer’s lawyer sending questions for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is not legally bound to answer such questions most will be content to do so. They may invoice a reasonable administration fee for responding to questions or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average fee for the paperwork that you are referring to is £350, in some transactions it is above £800. The management information fee levied by the landlord must be accompanied by a summary of entitlements and obligations in respect of administration fees, otherwise the charge is not strictly payable. In reality one has little choice but to pay whatever is demanded should you wish to sell the property.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Penistone - Sample of Questions you should consider Prior to buying

Does the lease have more than 90 years remaining?