There are only Fifty years unexpired on my flat in Wadhurst. I am keen to extend my lease but my freeholder is missing. 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 granted an extra 90 years by the magistrate. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have made all reasonable attempts to track down the lessor. In some cases a specialist may be useful to carry out a search and prepare an expert document which can be used as proof that the landlord can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a conveyancer both on investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Wadhurst.

Last month I purchased a leasehold property in Wadhurst. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before my ownership?

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. Strange as it may seem, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to ensure 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).

I am a negotiator for a long established estate agency in Wadhurst where we have witnessed a number of leasehold sales jeopardised due to short leases. I have been given contradictory information from local Wadhurst conveyancing solicitors. Can you confirm whether the seller of a flat can commence the lease extension process for the buyer?

Provided that the seller has owned the lease 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. The benefit of this is that the buyer can avoid having to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed before, or simultaneously with 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.

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

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Wadhurst can be avoided where you get in touch lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and ask them to collate the leasehold documentation needed by the buyers representatives.
• The majority landlords or Management Companies in Wadhurst levy fees for providing management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the fee that they propose to charge. The management information sought on or before finding a buyer, thus reducing delays. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most usual cause of frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Wadhurst.

If all goes to plan we aim to complete the sale of our £375000 garden flat in Wadhurst in just under a week. The freeholder has quoted £312 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and 3 years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Wadhurst?

Wadhurst conveyancing on leasehold flats normally requires the purchaser’s solicitor submitting questions for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is not legally bound to answer such questions most will be content to assist. They may levy a reasonable charge for responding to enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average fee for the information that you are referring to is £350, in some cases it is in excess of £800. The administration charge levied by the landlord must be accompanied by a summary of entitlements and obligations in relation to administration charges, without which the charge is not strictly payable. Reality however dictates that you have no option but to pay whatever is requested of you if you want to complete the sale of your home.

Wadhurst Leasehold Conveyancing - Sample of Questions you should ask before Purchasing

Are any of leasehold owners in arrears of their service charge payments? How long is the Lease? In the main the cost for major works tend not to be incorporated into the maintenance charges, albeit that some managing agents in Wadhurst ask tenants to contribute towards a reserve fund and this is used to offset against major works.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Wadhurst