I only have 68 years remaining on my lease in Chesham Bois. I now wish to get lease extension but my landlord is absent. What are my options?

On the basis that you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be lengthened by the Court. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have made all reasonable attempts to track down the landlord. For most situations an enquiry agent would be useful to try and locate and prepare an expert document to be used as evidence that the freeholder can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a solicitor in relation to proving the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Chesham Bois.

I have just appointed agents to market my basement apartment in Chesham Bois.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just had a yearly maintenance charge invoice – what should I do?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should clear the service charge as normal because all ground rent and service charges will be apportioned on completion, so you will be reimbursed by the buyer for the period running from after the completion date to the next payment date. Most managing agents will not acknowledge the buyer until the service charges have been paid and are up to date so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Chesham Bois from the point of view of speeding up the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Chesham Bois can be reduced where you get in touch lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold documentation needed by the buyers representatives.
• Many landlords or managing agents in Chesham Bois levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should find out the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack sought on or before finding a buyer, thus reducing delays. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most usual reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Chesham Bois.
• If you have carried out any alterations to the residence would they have required Landlord’s approval? Have you, for example laid down wooden flooring? Most leases in Chesham Bois state that internal structural alterations or laying down wooden flooring necessitate a licence issued by the Landlord acquiescing to such works. Should you dont have the approvals in place you should not contact the landlord without contacting your solicitor first.
• A minority of Chesham Bois leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, it would be prudent to notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. The bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is financially capable of paying the annual service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their lawyers.
• If you have had any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are resolved before the property is put on the market. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where there is an ongoing dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to discharge any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal details of the dispute to the buyers, but it is better to reveal the dispute as historic as opposed to unsettled.

We expect to complete the disposal of our £ 275000 apartment in Chesham Bois on Monday in a week. The freeholder has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and previous years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge an administration fee for a flat conveyance in Chesham Bois?

Chesham Bois conveyancing on leasehold apartments normally necessitates the buyer’s conveyancer submitting questions for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to answer such questions most will be content to do so. They are entitled invoice a reasonable charge for responding to enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average costs for the information that you are referring to is £350, in some cases it exceeds £800. The management information fee levied by the landlord must be sent together with a synopsis of rights and obligations in respect of administration charges, otherwise the charge is not strictly payable. Reality however dictates that one has no choice but to pay whatever is requested of you should you wish to exchange contracts with the buyer.

In relation to leasehold conveyancing in Chesham Bois what are the most common lease defects?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Chesham Bois. All leases are individual and drafting errors can result in certain clauses are erroneous. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• A provision to repair 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.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

You could 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. National Westminster Bank, Norwich and Peterborough Building Society, and TSB all have very detailed requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is defective they may refuse to provide security, forcing the purchaser to pull out.

I invested in buying a studio flat in Chesham Bois, conveyancing having been completed in 2000. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Similar flats in Chesham Bois with an extended lease are worth £174,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £60 per annum. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2079

With only 53 years left to run we estimate the premium for your lease extension to be between £34,200 and £39,600 plus costs.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of comprehensive due diligence. Do not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional concerns that need to be considered and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not take any other action placing reliance on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.