I have recently realised that I have Fifty years unexpired on my lease in Umberleigh. I now wish to extend my lease but my landlord is can not be found. What should I do?

On the basis that 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 for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be extended by the Court. You will be obliged to prove that you have used your best endeavours to locate the landlord. In some cases an enquiry agent should be useful to conduct investigations and prepare an expert document which can be used as proof that the freeholder can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a property lawyer in relation to devolving into the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court overseeing Umberleigh.

I have just appointed agents to market my ground floor flat in Umberleigh.Conveyancing has not commenced but I have just had a yearly service charge demand – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

The sensible thing to do is 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. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a two flats in Umberleigh both have approximately fifty years remaining on the leases. Will this present a problem?

There are plenty of short leases in Umberleigh. The lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the premises for a prescribed time frame. As the lease shortens the value of the lease deteriorate and results in it becoming more costly to acquire a lease extension. For this reason 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 lenders less inclined to grant a loan on such properties. Lease enfranchisement can be a protracted process. We advise that you get professional help from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this arena

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

If you are instructing a property lawyer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Umberleigh conveyancing firm) it is most important that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We suggested that you speak with several firms including non Umberleigh conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be useful:

• How familiar is the firm with lease extension legislation?
• What are the costs for lease extension conveyancing?

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Umberleigh with the intention of speeding up the sale process?

• Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Umberleigh can be reduced if you get in touch lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and ask them to collate the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers lawyers.
• The majority landlords or Management Companies in Umberleigh levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should discover the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack sought as soon as you have a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most frequent cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in Umberleigh.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s consent? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Umberleigh state that internal structural changes or addition of wooden flooring require a licence issued by the Landlord consenting to such works. Should you dont have the consents in place do not communicate with the landlord without contacting your solicitor before hand.
• If you have had any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are settled before the property is put on the market. The buyers and their solicitors will be nervous about purchasing a flat where there is a current dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to pay any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to present the dispute as over as opposed to unsettled.
• If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should make sure that you are holding the original share document. Organising a duplicate share certificate can be a lengthy formality and slows down many a Umberleigh conveyancing deal. Where a reissued share is necessary, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (if applicable) for this as soon as possible.

Umberleigh Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Queries before Purchasing

Best to be warned if a new roof is being installed or some other significant cost is due shortly to be shared by the leasehold owners and may well materially increase the the service fees or necessitate a one off invoice.