Back In 2003, I bought a leasehold house in Whissendine. Conveyancing and Chelsea Building Society mortgage went though with no issue. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1995. The conveyancing practitioner in Whissendine who acted for me is not around.Do I pay?

The first thing you should do is contact the Land Registry to make sure that this person is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. You do not need to instruct a Whissendine conveyancing solicitor to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for £3. Rest assured that regardless, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

I am attracted to a couple of apartments in Whissendine both have approximately 50 years remaining on the lease term. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

A lease is a right to use the premises for a prescribed time frame. As the lease shortens the marketability of the lease decreases and it becomes more expensive to acquire a lease extension. This is why it is generally wise to extend the lease term. It is often difficult to sell a property with a short lease as mortgage lenders may be reluctant to lend money on such properties. Lease enfranchisement can be a protracted process. We advise that you get professional assistance from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this arena

I am a negotiator for a reputable estate agent office in Whissendine where we have experienced a number of leasehold sales jeopardised due to short leases. I have received contradictory information from local Whissendine conveyancing solicitors. Could you shed some light as to whether the seller of a flat can start the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

As long as the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the proposed purchaser can avoid having to wait 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 buyer.

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Whissendine with the aim of saving time on the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Whissendine can be avoided where you appoint lawyers the minute you market your property and request that they start to put together the leasehold documentation needed by the buyers conveyancers.
• If you have carried out any alterations to the property would they have required Landlord’s consent? Have you, for example laid down wooden flooring? Whissendine leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or addition of wooden flooring require a licence issued by the Landlord acquiescing to such works. If you dont have the approvals in place you should not contact the landlord without contacting your conveyancer first.

Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on our sale of a £225000 maisonette in Whissendine in just under a week. The management company has quoted £300 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and previous years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Whissendine?

Whissendine conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes normally requires the buyer’s solicitor sending enquiries for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is not legally bound to respond to such questions the majority will be content to assist. They may levy a reasonable administration fee for answering enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average fee for the paperwork that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some cases it is in excess of £800. The management information fee required by the landlord must be accompanied by a synopsis of rights and obligations in relation to administration fees, without which the invoice is not strictly payable. In reality you have little choice but to pay whatever is demanded should you wish to exchange contracts with the buyer.

I purchased a garden flat in Whissendine, conveyancing was carried out 2003. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Comparable properties in Whissendine with an extended lease are worth £235,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £55 invoiced every year. The lease ceases on 21st October 2080

With only 54 years unexpired we estimate the premium for your lease extension to range between £33,300 and £38,400 as well as professional fees.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed investigations. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt additional concerns that need to be taken into account and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward based on this information before getting professional advice.

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Lease Extensions in Whissendine