I only have 62 years left on my lease in Bloomsbury. I now wish to extend my lease but my freeholder is can not be found. What should I do?

If 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 magistrate. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you have used your best endeavours to find the freeholder. On the whole an enquiry agent would be helpful to conduct investigations and to produce a report to be used as proof that the landlord can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a conveyancer both on proving the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court covering Bloomsbury.

Back In 2009, I bought a leasehold house in Bloomsbury. Conveyancing and Barclays Direct mortgage organised. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1994. The conveyancing solicitor in Bloomsbury who previously acted has long since retired.Any advice?

The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to be sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. It is not necessary to instruct a Bloomsbury conveyancing solicitor to do this as it can be done on-line for a few pound. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

Last month I purchased a leasehold property in Bloomsbury. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. However, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. It is an essential part of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to ensure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.

If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).

If all goes to plan we aim to complete our sale of a £200000 flat in Bloomsbury next Wednesday . The freeholder has quoted £324 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and 3 years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in Bloomsbury?

Bloomsbury conveyancing on leasehold flats usually involves the buyer’s solicitor sending enquiries for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to address such questions most will be willing to do so. They are at liberty charge a reasonable administration fee for answering enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average fee for the paperwork that you are referring to is £350, in some situations it is above £800. The administration charge demanded by the landlord must be accompanied by a synopsis of rights and obligations in respect of administration fees, without which the charge is technically not due. Reality however dictates that you have little option but to pay whatever is demanded if you want to exchange contracts with the buyer.

I own a basement flat in Bloomsbury. In the absence of agreement between myself and the freeholder, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal make a decision on the sum payable for a lease extension?

Most certainly. We are happy to put you in touch with a Bloomsbury conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension case for a Bloomsbury premises is Flat 89 Trinity Court Grays Inn Road in February 2013. the Tribunal found that the premium to be paid by the tenant on the grant of a new lease, in accordance with section 56 and Schedule 13 to the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 should be £36,229. This case affected 1 flat. The the unexpired residue of the current lease was 66.8 years.

What are the common defects that you come across in leases for Bloomsbury properties?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Bloomsbury. All leases is drafted differently and drafting errors can result in certain sections are not included. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain parts 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 have difficulties when selling your property if you have a defective lease as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Yorkshire Building Society, Bank of Scotland, and Barclays Direct all have express conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is problematic they may refuse to grant the mortgage, obliging the buyer to pull out.