I only have Seventy years unexpired on my flat in Porth. I now wish to extend my lease but my freeholder is missing. What options are available to me?

If you meet the appropriate requirements, 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 mean that your lease can be lengthened by the magistrate. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have used your best endeavours to find the freeholder. On the whole an enquiry agent would be useful to conduct investigations and to produce an expert document which can be used as evidence that the landlord can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a property lawyer in relation to devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Porth.

Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my 2 bed apartment in Porth.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just had a half-yearly maintenance charge demand – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

It best that you discharge 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 managing agents 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 am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that appears to tick a lot of boxes, at a great figure which is making it more attractive. I have just found out that it's a leasehold as opposed to freehold. I would have thought that there are particular concerns purchasing a house with a leasehold title in Porth. Conveyancing lawyers have are about to be instructed. Will my lawyers set out the implications of buying a leasehold house in Porth ?

The majority of houses in Porth are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local conveyancer used to dealing with such properties who can assist with the conveyancing process. it is apparent that you are buying in Porth in which case you should be shopping around for a Porth conveyancing solicitor and check that they have experience in advising on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the unexpired lease term. As a lessee you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions such as requiring the landlord’spermission to carry out alterations. It may be necessary to pay a maintenance charge towards the upkeep of the communal areas where the house is part of an estate. Your conveyancer should appraise you on the various issues.

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

If you are instructing a property lawyer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Porth conveyancing practice) it is essential that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We suggested that you make enquires with several firms including non Porth 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 the firm is not ALEP accredited then why not?

Are there common problems that you encounter in leases for Porth properties?

Leasehold conveyancing in Porth is not unique. Most leases are unique and legal mistakes in the legal wording can result in certain clauses are missing. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the property
• A duty to insure the building
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

You may encounter difficulties when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. HSBC Bank, Leeds Building Society, and Godiva Mortgages Ltd 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 problematic they may refuse to grant the mortgage, forcing the buyer to pull out.

Porth Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - A selection of Queries before buying

You will want to discover as much as possible concerning the company managing the block as they will either make your living at the property much simpler or a lot more difficult. As the proprietor of a leasehold property you are frequently in the clutches of the managing agents from a financial perspective and when it comes to every day issues such as the cleanliness of the common parts. You should not be shy to ask prospective neighbours whether they are happy with their management. Finally, investigate as to the dates that the service charges are due to the managing agents and precisely how they are spending the funds. What is the annual service fee and ground rent? Is there a share of the freehold?

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Porth