I only have 72 years remaining on my lease in South Woodham Ferrers. I now wish to get lease extension but my freeholder is missing. What are my options?

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 magistrate. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you have used your best endeavours to track down the lessor. In some cases a specialist should be useful to conduct investigations and to produce an expert document which can be accepted by the court as proof that the freeholder can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a conveyancer in relation to devolving into the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court covering South Woodham Ferrers.

I have just started marketing my ground floor apartment in South Woodham Ferrers.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just received a quarterly service charge demand – Do I pay up?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should pay 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 seems to be perfect, at a reasonable figure which is making it more attractive. I have subsequently found out that it's a leasehold as opposed to freehold. I would have thought that there are issues purchasing a leasehold house in South Woodham Ferrers. Conveyancing solicitors have are about to be instructed. Will they explain the issues?

Most houses in South Woodham Ferrers are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area can help the conveyancing process. We note that you are buying in South Woodham Ferrers so you should seriously consider looking for a South Woodham Ferrers conveyancing solicitor and check that they are used to dealing with leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the unexpired lease term. As a leaseholder you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease comes with conditions for example requiring the landlord’spermission to conduct alterations. It may be necessary to pay a maintenance charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the house is located on an estate. Your conveyancer will report to you on the legal implications.

Last month I purchased a leasehold flat in South Woodham Ferrers. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. However, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. It is an essential part of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to be sure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.

If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).

Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on the sale of our £200000 flat in South Woodham Ferrers in just under a week. The freeholder has quoted £300 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and 3 years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge an administration fee for a leasehold conveyance in South Woodham Ferrers?

For the majority of leasehold sales in South Woodham Ferrers conveyancing will involve, questions about the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :

• Completing pre-contract enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in South Woodham Ferrers
• Supplying insurance information
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your solicitor will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for South Woodham Ferrers leasehold premises is £350. For South Woodham Ferrers conveyancing transactions it is customary for the seller to pay for these costs. The landlord or their agents are under no legal obligation to answer such questions most will be willing to do so - albeit often at exorbitant prices where the fees bear little relation to the work involved. Unfortunately there is no law that requires fixed charges for administrative tasks. Neither is there any legal time frame by which they are required to supply the information.

South Woodham Ferrers Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Questions you should consider Prior to Purchasing

You should want to find out as much as you can about the managing agents as they will either make life much simpler or problematic. Being a leasehold owner you are often at the mercy of the managing agents both financially and when it comes to daily issues like the tidiness of the communal areas. Ask prospective neighbours what they think of their service. In conclusion, be sure you discover the dates that you are obliged pay the maintenance charge to the managing agents and precisely how they are spending that money. This information is useful as a) areas could cause problems for the building as the communal areas may begin to deteriorate where repairs are not paid for b) if the leaseholders have an issue with the running of the building you will need to have complete disclosure Where a South Woodham Ferrers lease has no more than eighty years it will impact the value of the apartment. It is worth checking with your bank that they are willing to go ahead with the loan given the lease term. A short lease means that you will almost definitely have to extend the lease at some point and it is worth finding out what this will be. For most South Woodham Ferrerslease extensions you will be be obliged to have been the owner of the property for two years in order to be entitled to extend the lease.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in South Woodham Ferrers