Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Whiston. Before I get started I want to be sure as to the number of years remaining on the lease.

If the lease is registered - and 99.9% are in Whiston - 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 Sixty One years unexpired on my flat in Whiston. I need to extend my lease but my landlord is can not be found. What options are available to me?

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 lengthened by the magistrate. However, you will be required to prove that you have made all reasonable attempts to locate the landlord. For most situations an enquiry agent should be useful to conduct investigations and to produce an expert document to be accepted by the court as evidence 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 covering Whiston.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold house in Whiston. Conveyancing and Virgin Money mortgage went though with no issue. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the freehold. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1991. The conveyancing practitioner in Whiston who previously acted has long since retired.Any advice?

The first thing you should do is contact the Land Registry to be sure that this person is indeed the new freeholder. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Whiston conveyancing firm to do this as it can be done on-line for less than a fiver. You should note that regardless, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I am attracted to a couple of apartments in Whiston which have approximately forty five years unexpired on the leases. Will this present a problem?

There are plenty of short leases in Whiston. The lease is a right to use the premises for a period of time. As the lease gets shorter the saleability of the lease deteriorate and it becomes more costly to acquire a lease extension. This is why it is generally wise to increase the term of the lease. It is often difficult to sell a property with a short lease because mortgage companies may be unwilling to lend money on properties of this type. Lease extension can be a protracted process. We recommend you get professional help from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this arena

I am employed by a reputable estate agency in Whiston where we have experienced a few flat sales put at risk due to short leases. I have been given contradictory information from local Whiston conveyancing firms. Could you clarify whether the seller of a flat can start the lease extension process 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. 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 prior to, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

An alternative approach is 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 am the registered owner of a 1 bedroom flat in Whiston, conveyancing was carried out half a dozen years ago. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Similar properties in Whiston with a long lease are worth £178,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £55 yearly. The lease ceases on 21st October 2100

With just 74 years left to run we estimate the premium for your lease extension to range between £9,500 and £11,000 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 without more comprehensive due diligence. You should not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt other concerns that need to be taken into account and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action placing reliance on this information without first getting professional advice.