Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only 62 years unexpired on my lease in Shotton. I now wish to extend my lease but my landlord is missing. What options are available to me?

On the basis that you qualify, 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. You will be obliged to prove that you or your lawyers have done all that could be expected to locate the landlord. For most situations an enquiry agent would be useful to conduct investigations and to produce a report which can be accepted by the court as proof that the landlord is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a property lawyer in relation to proving the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing Shotton.

Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my 2 bed apartment in Shotton.Conveyancing has not commenced but I have just had a yearly maintenance charge invoice – what should I do?

It best that you 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 management companies 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. 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 reasonable figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have since discovered that it's a leasehold as opposed to freehold. I would have thought that there are particular concerns purchasing a leasehold house in Shotton. Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed. Will they explain the issues?

Most houses in Shotton are freehold and not leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can help the conveyancing process. it is apparent that you are purchasing in Shotton in which case you should be shopping around for a Shotton conveyancing practitioner and be sure that they have experience in dealing with leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the number of years remaining. As a lessee you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions for example requiring the freeholder’spermission to conduct alterations. It may be necessary to pay a contribution towards the maintenance of the communal areas where the house is part of an estate. Your solicitor will report to you on the legal implications.

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a couple of flats in Shotton which have approximately forty five years unexpired on the leases. Will this present a problem?

A lease is a right to use the property for a prescribed time frame. As a lease shortens the value of the lease decreases and results in it becoming more costly to extend the lease. This is why it is often a good idea to increase the term of the lease. Sometimes it is difficult to sell a property with a short lease because mortgage companies less inclined to grant a loan on properties of this type. Lease enfranchisement can be a protracted process. We advise that you get professional help from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this area

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Shotton with the intention of expediting the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Shotton can be avoided where you get in touch lawyers as soon as you market your property and request that they start to collate the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers lawyers.
• The majority freeholders or Management Companies in Shotton charge for providing management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should find out the fee that they propose to charge. The management information 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 usual cause of frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Shotton.
• If you have carried out any alterations to the premises would they have required Landlord’s consent? Have you, for example laid down wooden flooring? Shotton leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or installing wooden flooring necessitate a licence from the Landlord consenting to such works. Should you dont have the approvals to hand do not communicate with the landlord without checking with your conveyancer first.
• Some Shotton leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. Any bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are 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 service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their lawyers.
• If you have had conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is essential that these are settled prior to the flat being put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be nervous about purchasing a property where there is an ongoing dispute. You may need to swallow your pride and pay any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. 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 reveal the dispute as over as opposed to unresolved.

Shotton Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Sample of Queries Prior to buying

Best to be warned whether redecorating or some other major work is coming up to be shared amongst the leaseholders and will dramatically increase the the service fees or necessitate a one time invoice.