I only have Sixty One years unexpired on my flat in Birkenhead. I now want to extend my lease but my freeholder is missing. 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. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you have done all that could be expected to track down the lessor. In some cases a specialist may be helpful to conduct investigations and to produce a report which can be accepted by the court as proof that the landlord can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a property lawyer in relation to proving the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court overseeing Birkenhead.

Back In 2007, I bought a leasehold house in Birkenhead. Conveyancing and Clydesdale mortgage are in place. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the freehold. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1996. The conveyancing practitioner in Birkenhead who previously acted has long since retired.Any advice?

First contact HMLR to be sure that this person is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Birkenhead conveyancing lawyer to do this as it can be done on-line for less than a fiver. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

I am employed by a reputable estate agency in Birkenhead where we have witnessed a few flat sales jeopardised due to short leases. I have received conflicting advice from local Birkenhead conveyancing solicitors. Please can you confirm whether the vendor of a flat can instigate the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

Provided that the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the buyer can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. 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.

What advice can you give us when it comes to appointing a Birkenhead conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

If you are instructing a property lawyer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Birkenhead conveyancing practice) it is essential that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We recommend that you speak with several firms including non Birkenhead conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions might be helpful:

• How experienced is the practice with lease extension legislation?
• What volume of lease extensions have they carried out in Birkenhead in the last twenty four months?

What are the common problems that you witness in leases for Birkenhead properties?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Birkenhead. All leases is drafted differently and drafting errors can sometimes mean that certain provisions are missing. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain elements of the premises
• Insurance obligations
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

A defective lease will likely cause problems when trying to sell a property primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. National Westminster Bank, Skipton Building Society, and Aldermore all have very detailed requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is problematic they may refuse to grant the mortgage, forcing the buyer to withdraw.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Birkenhead - Examples of Queries Prior to Purchasing

How many of the leaseholders are in arrears for their service charge payments? How much is the annual service fee and ground rent? The prefered form of lease structure is a share of the freehold. In this arrangement the leaseholders benefit from control and even though a managing agent is usually retained if it is bigger than a house conversion, the managing agent acts for the leaseholders themselves.