I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Woodhall Spa. Before diving in I would like to find out the remaining lease term.

Assuming the lease is registered - and most are in Woodhall Spa - then the leasehold title will always include the short particulars 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 Seventy years left on my lease in Woodhall Spa. I am keen to extend my lease but my freeholder is absent. What are my options?

If you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply 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 Court. You will be obliged to prove that you or your lawyers have done all that could be expected to find the landlord. On the whole an enquiry agent would be helpful to conduct investigations and prepare a report to be used as evidence that the landlord is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a solicitor in relation to investigating the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court overseeing Woodhall Spa.

Back In 2000, I bought a leasehold house in Woodhall Spa. Conveyancing and Alliance & Leicester mortgage are in place. 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 1998. The conveyancing solicitor in Woodhall Spa who acted for me is not around.What should I do?

First make enquiries of HMLR to make sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. You do not need to incur the fees of a Woodhall Spa conveyancing lawyer to do this as it can be done on-line 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 work for a busy estate agency in Woodhall Spa where we see a number of leasehold sales derailed due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received inconsistent advice from local Woodhall Spa conveyancing solicitors. Can you confirm whether the vendor of a flat can instigate 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 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 wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, 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 buyer.

What are your top tips when it comes to finding a Woodhall Spa conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a property lawyer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Woodhall Spa conveyancing practice) it is imperative that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We recommend that you talk with two or three firms including non Woodhall Spa conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be of use:

• How experienced is the practice with lease extension legislation?

Woodhall Spa Leasehold Conveyancing - Sample of Queries Prior to buying

Is anyone aware of any major works in the near future that could add a premium to the maintenance charges? Make sure you discover if the the lease contains any unreasonable restrictions in the lease. By way of example some leases prohibit pets being allowed in in a block in Woodhall Spa. If you love the propertyin Woodhall Spa however your dog is not allowed to live with you then you will be faced difficult decision. The prefered form of lease arrangement is if the freehold title is owned by the leaseholders. In this arrangement the leaseholders have being in charge if their destiny and although a managing agent is usually employed where the building is bigger than a house conversion, the managing agent is directed by the tenants.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Woodhall Spa