I only have 62 years unexpired on my flat in Small Heath. I now wish to extend my lease but my landlord is can not be found. 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 prove that you have done all that could be expected to track down the freeholder. On the whole an enquiry agent may be useful to carry out a search and prepare a report to be accepted by the court as evidence that the freeholder can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer both on devolving into the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Small Heath.

I have just started marketing my 2 bed apartment in Small Heath.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just received a yearly maintenance charge demand – what should I do?

It best that you clear 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 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 tempted by the attractive purchase price for a couple of maisonettes in Small Heath which have about fifty years unexpired on the leases. Do I need to be concerned?

There are plenty of short leases in Small Heath. The lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the property for a prescribed time frame. As the lease gets shorter the saleability of the lease deteriorate and results in it becoming more expensive to extend the lease. For this reason it is generally wise to extend the lease term. It is often difficult to sell a property with a short lease as mortgage companies may be reluctant to lend money on such properties. Lease enfranchisement can be a protracted process. We recommend you seek professional assistance from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this field

What advice can you give us when it comes to choosing a Small Heath conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?

When appointing a conveyancer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Small Heath conveyancing firm) it is essential that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We suggested that you make enquires with several firms including non Small Heath conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions might be useful:

• How experienced is the firm with lease extension legislation?

If all goes to plan we aim to complete the disposal of our £475000 garden flat in Small Heath next Monday . The landlords agents has quoted £384 for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and 3 years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in Small Heath?

Small Heath conveyancing on leasehold flats normally involves the buyer’s conveyancer submitting questions for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to respond to these enquiries most will be content to assist. They are at liberty levy a reasonable charge for responding to questions or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average costs for the information that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some transactions it is in excess of £800. The administration charge invoiced by the landlord must be sent together with a synopsis of entitlements and obligations in relation to administration fees, without which the charge is not strictly payable. In reality one has no choice but to pay whatever is demanded should you wish to exchange contracts with the buyer.

Small Heath Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Queries Prior to buying

The prefered form of lease structure is a share of the freehold. In this situation the lessees benefit from control and although a managing agent is often employed where it is larger than a house conversion, the managing agent employed by the leaseholders. Generally speaking the cost for major works tend not to be included within maintenance charges, albeit that some managing agents in Small Heath ask tenants to pay into a sinking fund and this is used to offset against major works. Is there a share of the freehold?

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Small Heath