I only have Seventy years remaining on my lease in Burnley. I am keen to get lease extension but my freeholder is missing. What options are available to me?

On the basis that you qualify, 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 granted an extra 90 years by the magistrate. You will be obliged to prove that you have done all that could be expected to find the freeholder. For most situations a specialist may be helpful to try and locate and prepare a report to be used as proof that the landlord is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a property lawyer both on proving the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Burnley.

I am hoping to sign contracts shortly on a studio apartment in Burnley. Conveyancing lawyers inform me that they report fully on Monday. What should I be looking out for?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Burnley should include some of the following:

• Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, freeholder
• The total extent of the demise. This will be the apartment itself but might include a loft or basement if appropriate.
• Are you allowed to have a pet in the flat?
• Whether the lease restricts you from letting out the property, or working from home
• Changes to the flat (alterations and additions)
• What you can do if a neighbour breach a clause of their lease?

I am looking at a two flats in Burnley both have in the region of 50 years left on the leases. should I be concerned?

A lease is a right to use the premises for a period of time. As the lease shortens the saleability of the lease deteriorate and it becomes more expensive to extend the lease. This is why it is generally wise to extend the lease term. Sometimes it is difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease as mortgage companies less inclined to grant a loan on properties of this type. Lease enfranchisement can be a difficult process. We recommend you seek professional help from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this field

I work for a long established estate agency in Burnley where we have experienced a number of flat sales derailed due to short leases. I have received inconsistent advice from local Burnley conveyancing firms. Please can you clarify whether the owner of a flat can commence the lease extension process 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 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 needs to be completed before, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.

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 Burnley conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

If you are instructing a solicitor for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Burnley conveyancing firm) it is most important that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We recommend that you make enquires with several firms including non Burnley conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions could be useful:

• How experienced is the practice with lease extension legislation?
• How many lease extensions has the firm conducted in Burnley in the last year?

I bought a basement flat in Burnley, conveyancing having been completed half a dozen years ago. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Similar flats in Burnley with over 90 years remaining are worth £193,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £65 levied per year. The lease runs out on 21st October 2105

With just 79 years left to run the likely cost is going to span between £9,500 and £11,000 plus costs.

The figure 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 investigations. Do not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt other issues that need to be considered and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action based on this information before getting professional advice.