Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only Fifty years left on my lease in Stapleford. I now wish to get lease extension but my landlord is absent. What options are available to me?

If 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 extended by the Court. You will be obliged to prove that you have used your best endeavours to find the lessor. For most situations a specialist should be useful to conduct investigations and prepare a report to be used as proof that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a solicitor both on investigating the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Stapleford.

I am hoping to sign contracts shortly on a leasehold property in Stapleford. Conveyancing solicitors have said that they will have a report out to me on Monday. What should I be looking out for?

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

• The physical extent of the property. This will be the flat itself but may incorporate a roof space or basement if appropriate.

I’m about to sell my basement flat in Stapleford.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just received a quarterly service charge invoice – what should I do?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should 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 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. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

I am attracted to a two maisonettes in Stapleford both have approximately 50 years unexpired on the leases. should I be concerned?

There is no doubt about it. A leasehold flat in Stapleford is a wasting asset as a result of the shortening lease. The closer the lease gets to its expiry date, the more it reduces the value of the property. The majority of buyers and banks, leases with less than eighty years become less and less marketable. On a more upbeat note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the property for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of a residence with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Stapleford conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. More often than not it is possible to negotiate informally with the freeholder to extend the lease You may find he or she is happy to negotiate informally and willing to consider your offer straight off, without having to involve anyone else. This will save you time and money and it could help you reach a lower price on the lease. You need to ensure that the agreed terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Stapleford with the purpose of speeding up the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Stapleford can be reduced if you get in touch lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold documentation needed by the purchasers’ lawyers.
• The majority freeholders or Management Companies in Stapleford levy fees for providing management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should discover the fee that they propose to charge. The management information can be applied for as soon as you have a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The typical amount of time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most frequent cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in Stapleford.

Stapleford Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Queries before Purchasing

Does the lease have in excess of 80 years remaining? Please note if it is no more than 80 years it will have adverse implications on the salability of the property. It is worth checking with your mortgage company that they are willing to to proceed given the lease term. Leases with fewer than 80 years remaining means that you will most likely have to extend the lease sooner rather than later and it is worth finding out how much this will be. For most Staplefordlease extensions you will need to own the premises for 24 months in order to be entitled to extend the lease. It would be wise to discover as much as you can concerning the company managing the block as they will affect your use and enjoyment of the property. Being a leasehold owner you are often at the mercy of the managing agents both financially and when it comes to daily matters such as the cleanliness of the communal areas. You should not be shy to ask other tenants whether they are happy with them. On a final note, be sure you know the dates that you are obliged pay the service charge to the relevant party and specifically what you get for your money.

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Lease Extensions in Stapleford