Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Stretford. Before I set the wheels in motion I want to be sure as to the remaining lease term.

Assuming the lease is registered - and most are in Stretford - then the leasehold title will always include the basic details of the lease, namely the date; the term; and the original parties. From a conveyancing perspective such details then enable any prospective buyer and lender to confirm that any lease they are looking at is the one relevant to that title.For any other purpose, such as confirming how long the term was granted for and calculating what is left, then the register should be sufficient on it's own.

Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only Fifty years unexpired on my flat in Stretford. I now wish to get lease extension 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 submit an application to the County Court for an order 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. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you have used your best endeavours to track down the landlord. In some cases a specialist would be helpful to conduct investigations and to produce an expert document to be used as proof that the landlord can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a property lawyer both on investigating the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Stretford.

I've found a house that seems to be perfect, at a great figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have since found out that the title is leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are issues buying a house with a leasehold title in Stretford. Conveyancing advisers have are about to be instructed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Stretford are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local conveyancer used to dealing with such properties who can help the conveyancing process. We note that you are buying in Stretford in which case you should be shopping around for a Stretford conveyancing solicitor 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 leaseholder you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions such as requiring the landlord’spermission to carry out alterations. It may be necessary to pay a service charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the house is part of an estate. Your lawyer will appraise you on the various issues.

I am looking at a two apartments in Stretford which have about 50 years remaining on the lease term. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

There are no two ways about it. A leasehold flat in Stretford is a wasting asset as a result of the shortening lease. The closer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it reduces the salability of the premises. The majority of buyers and mortgage companies, leases with less than eighty years become less and less attractive. 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 premises 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 premises 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 Stretford 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.

I work for a busy estate agent office in Stretford where we see a number of flat sales put at risk as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given conflicting advice from local Stretford conveyancing solicitors. Please can you shed some light as to whether the owner of a flat can initiate the lease extension process for the buyer?

As long as the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence 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 for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed before, or at the same time as 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 purchaser.

I inherited a garden flat in Stretford, conveyancing having been completed 3 years ago. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Comparable properties in Stretford with a long lease are worth £237,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £65 invoiced every year. The lease ends on 21st October 2103

With just 80 years unexpired we estimate the premium for your lease extension to range between £11,400 and £13,200 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed due diligence. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt additional concerns that need to be taken into account and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward placing reliance on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.

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Lease Extensions in Stretford