Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only Seventy years unexpired on my flat in Shirehampton. I need to extend my lease but my landlord is can not be found. What should I do?

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 lengthened by the magistrate. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have used your best endeavours to locate the freeholder. In some cases a specialist should be useful to conduct investigations and to produce an expert document to be accepted by the court as evidence that the landlord is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a property lawyer both on devolving into the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court covering Shirehampton.

Due to complete next month on a garden flat in Shirehampton. Conveyancing lawyers assured me that they are sending me a report next week. What should I be looking out for?

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

• How long the lease is You should be advised as what happens when the lease ends, and aware of the importance of not letting the lease term falling below eighty years
• Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, freeholder
• Defining your legal entitlements in relation to the communal areas in the block.For instance, does the lease include a right of way over a path or staircase?
• You should have a good understanding of the insurance provisions
• I don't know whether the lease allows me to alter or improve anything in the flat - you should know whether it applies to all alterations or just structural alteration, and whether consent is required
• The landlord’s obligations to repair and maintain the building. It is important that you know who is responsible for the repair and maintenance of every part of the building
• What the implications are if you breach a clause of your lease?

I am employed by a long established estate agency in Shirehampton where we have witnessed a few flat sales jeopardised due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received inconsistent advice from local Shirehampton conveyancing solicitors. Can you shed some light as to whether the vendor of a flat can instigate the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

Provided that the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the proposed purchaser can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or simultaneously with completion of the sale.

Alternatively, it may be possible to agree the lease extension with the freeholder either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the buyer.

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

• A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Shirehampton can be reduced if you get in touch lawyers the minute you market your property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the purchasers’ lawyers.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s permission? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Shirehampton leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or installing wooden flooring necessitate a licence from the Landlord approving such alterations. Should you fail to have the approvals to hand you should not communicate with the landlord without contacting your solicitor in advance.
• A minority of Shirehampton leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this is the case, it would be prudent to notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand financial (bank) and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are able to meet the yearly 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 service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their lawyers.
• If there is a history of any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are resolved before the property is marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be concerned about purchasing a flat 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 are still duty bound to disclose details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to present the dispute as historic rather than unresolved.
• You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be advisable verify this by asking your lawyers. A buyer’s lawyer will not be happy to advise their client to where the lease term is below 80 years. In the circumstances it is essential at an early stage that you identify whether the lease term for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

In relation to leasehold conveyancing in Shirehampton what are the most frequent lease problems?

Leasehold conveyancing in Shirehampton is not unique. All leases are unique and drafting errors can sometimes mean that certain sections are wrong. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the premises
• 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

You could have a problem when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Birmingham Midshires, Bank of Scotland, and Aldermore all have very detailed conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to provide security, forcing the buyer to pull out.

Shirehampton Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Sample of Queries before buying

Make sure you enquire if the the lease includes any adverse restrictions in the lease. For example it is very common in Shirehampton leases that pets are not permitted in in a block in Shirehampton. If you like the propertyin Shirehampton however your cat is not allowed to move with you then you have a very hard compromise.