I only have 72 years left on my flat in Chalfont St Peter. I need to get lease extension but my freeholder is missing. What should I do?

If 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. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you have done all that could be expected to track down the lessor. For most situations a specialist should be useful to try and locate and prepare an expert document to be used as proof that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a property lawyer in relation to proving the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing Chalfont St Peter.

I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that appears to meet my requirements, at a great price which is making it all the more appealing. I have just found out that it's a leasehold as opposed to freehold. I would have thought that there are issues buying a house with a leasehold title in Chalfont St Peter. Conveyancing advisers have are about to be appointed. Will my lawyers set out the implications of buying a leasehold house in Chalfont St Peter ?

The majority of houses in Chalfont St Peter are freehold rather than leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can help the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are purchasing in Chalfont St Peter so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Chalfont St Peter conveyancing practitioner and check that they have experience in dealing with leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the unexpired lease term. Being a leaseholder you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions for example obtaining the freeholder’sconsent to conduct changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a service charge towards the upkeep of the estate where the property is located on an estate. Your solicitor should report to you on the legal implications.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold house in Chalfont St Peter. Conveyancing and Alliance & Leicester mortgage organised. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1996. The conveyancing practitioner in Chalfont St Peter who previously acted has long since retired.Any advice?

First make enquiries of HMLR to make sure that this person is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. You do not need to instruct a Chalfont St Peter conveyancing solicitor to do this as it can be done on-line for a few pound. Rest assured that regardless, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a two maisonettes in Chalfont St Peter which have approximately 50 years unexpired on the lease term. Do I need to be concerned?

There is no doubt about it. A leasehold flat in Chalfont St Peter is a deteriorating asset as a result of the shortening lease. The closer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it adversely affects the value of the premises. For most purchasers and mortgage companies, leases with under 75 years become less and less marketable. On a more positive note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the property for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of premises with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Chalfont St Peter conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. A more straightforward and quicker method of extending would be to contact your landlord directly and sound him out on the prospect of extending the lease You may find he or she is happy to negotiate informally and willing to consider your offer straight off, without having to involve anyone else. This will save you time and money and it could help you reach a lower price on the lease. You need to ensure that any new terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.

I own a garden flat in Chalfont St Peter. Given that I can not reach agreement with the landlord, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal make a decision on the sum payable for a lease extension?

Absolutely. We can put you in touch with a Chalfont St Peter conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Chalfont St Peter flat is Flats 8, 11 and 15 Craigmore Court 46 Murray Road in December 2013. The tribunal held that the price payable by the Applicant tenant of Flat 8 to acquire an extended lease shall be £26,438 plus £1 to the intermediate lessee . The tribunal held that the price payable by the Applicant tenants of Flat 11 to acquire an extended lease shall be £26,791 plus £1 to the intermediate lessee. The tribunal held that the price payable by the Applicant tenant of Flat 15 to acquire an extended lease shall be £26,638 plus £1 to the intermediate lessee . This case related to 3 flats. The unexpired term was 71 years.

In relation to leasehold conveyancing in Chalfont St Peter what are the most frequent lease defects?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Chalfont St Peter. Most leases are individual and drafting errors can result in certain clauses are not included. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain elements of the property
• A duty to insure the building
• A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
• Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

You may encounter a problem when selling your property if you have a defective lease as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Birmingham Midshires, Chelsea Building Society, and Barclays Direct all have very detailed conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is defective they may refuse to provide security, obliging the purchaser to withdraw.

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Lease Extensions in Chalfont St Peter