I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Piccadilly. Before I get started I require certainty as to the number of years remaining on the lease.

If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and almost all are in Piccadilly - then the leasehold title will always include the short particulars 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 Sixty One years left on my flat in Piccadilly. I need to get lease extension but my freeholder is absent. 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 an order 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 done all that could be expected to track down the freeholder. For most situations an enquiry agent would be useful to try and locate and prepare a report to be used as proof that the landlord is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a solicitor both on devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Piccadilly.

Can you offer any advice when it comes to finding a Piccadilly conveyancing firm to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

When appointing a solicitor for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Piccadilly conveyancing practice) it is imperative that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We recommend that you speak with several firms including non Piccadilly conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be helpful:

• How experienced is the practice with lease extension legislation?
• What are the legal fees for lease extension conveyancing?

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Piccadilly with the intention of saving time on the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Piccadilly can be avoided if you get in touch lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and ask them to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the purchasers’ solicitors.
• If you have carried out any alterations to the property would they have required Landlord’s consent? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Piccadilly leases often stipulate that internal structural changes or addition of wooden flooring require a licence from the Landlord acquiescing to such changes. Where you dont have the paperwork to hand do not contact the landlord without checking with your conveyancer in advance.
• A minority of Piccadilly leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. The bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is financially capable of paying the annual 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 actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their lawyers.
• If there is a history of any disputes with your landlord or managing agents it is essential that these are settled before the property is marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where there is an ongoing dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to discharge any arrears of service charge or resolve 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 purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to present the dispute as historic rather than unresolved.
• If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should make sure that you are holding the original share document. Obtaining a re-issued share certificate can be a lengthy process and frustrates many a Piccadilly home move. Where a duplicate share is needed, do contact the company officers or managing agents (where applicable) for this sooner rather than later.

All being well we will complete the disposal of our £ 500000 apartment in Piccadilly next week. The management company has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and previous years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in Piccadilly?

Piccadilly conveyancing on leasehold apartments usually involves the buyer’s solicitor sending enquiries for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is not legally bound to address these enquiries most will be content to assist. They may charge a reasonable administration fee for answering questions or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average costs for the information that you are referring to is £350, in some transactions it is above £800. The administration charge required by the landlord must be sent together with a synopsis of entitlements and obligations in relation to administration fees, otherwise the charge is not strictly payable. In reality you have little option but to pay whatever is requested of you if you want to exchange contracts with the buyer.

I inherited a ground floor flat in Piccadilly. In the absence of agreement between myself and the freeholder, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal determine the sum due for a lease extension?

Absolutely. We can put you in touch with a Piccadilly conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a Piccadilly residence is Flat 1 3 Upper Belgrave Street in December 2010. The Tribunal determined that the price payablefor the Lease extension in respect of the subject premises was £2,202,007 This case related to 1 flat. The remaining number of years on the lease was 21 years.

I am the registered owner of a studio flat in Piccadilly, conveyancing formalities finalised in 2004. How much will my lease extension cost? Corresponding flats in Piccadilly with an extended lease are worth £165,000. The ground rent is £55 levied per year. The lease runs out on 21st October 2078

With 52 years left to run the likely cost is going to be between £30,400 and £35,200 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to provide the actual costs in the absence of detailed investigations. You should not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. 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.