Hadley Wood leasehold conveyancing: Q and A’s
I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Hadley Wood. Before diving in I would like to find out the number of years remaining on the lease.
If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and most are in Hadley Wood - then the leasehold title will always include the short particulars of the lease, namely the date; the term; and the original parties. From a conveyancing perspective such details then enable any prospective buyer and lender to confirm that any lease they are looking at is the one relevant to that title.For any other purpose, such as confirming how long the term was granted for and calculating what is left, then the register should be sufficient on it's own.
I want to rent out my leasehold apartment in Hadley Wood. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask her. Is permission from the freeholder required?
Notwithstanding that your last Hadley Wood conveyancing lawyer is not around you can check your lease to see if you are permitted to let out the apartment. The accepted inference is that if the deeds are non-specific, subletting is permitted. There may be a precondition that you need to obtain consent from your landlord or some other party prior to subletting. The net result is you not allowed to sublet in the absence of first obtaining permission. The consent must not not be unreasonably turned down. If your lease does not allow you to sublet you should ask your landlord for their consent.
I have recently realised that I have Sixty One years left on my flat in Hadley Wood. I need to get lease extension but my landlord is missing. 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 enable the lease to be granted an extra 90 years by the magistrate. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have used your best endeavours to find the freeholder. In some cases a specialist would be useful to carry out a search and to produce an expert document which can be accepted by the court as evidence that the landlord can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer in relation to investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Hadley Wood.
Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my basement flat in Hadley Wood.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just received a half-yearly service charge invoice – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?
It best that you clear the invoice 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 management companies will not acknowledge the buyer unless 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. This will smooth the conveyancing process.
Back In 2000, I bought a leasehold flat in Hadley Wood. Conveyancing and Alliance & Leicester mortgage went though with no issue. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1997. The conveyancing solicitor in Hadley Wood who acted for me is not around.Do I pay?
The first thing you should do is make enquiries of the Land Registry to be sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. You do not need to incur the fees of a Hadley Wood conveyancing firm to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. You should note that regardless, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.
I have had difficulty in trying to reach an agreement for a lease extension in Hadley Wood. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal adjudicate on premiums?
if there is a absentee freeholder or if there is disagreement about what the lease extension should cost, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) to judgment on the price.
An example of a Lease Extension case for a Hadley Wood premises is Flat 2 2 Netherfield Road in April 2010. The Tribunale held that premium payable for a 90 year extension to the existing Lease should be £7,705. This case related to 1 flat. The unexpired term was 76 years.
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