I’m about to sell my ground floor flat in Hoxton.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just received a half-yearly maintenance charge invoice – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

The sensible thing to do is 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 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.

I've found a house that seems to be perfect, at a great price which is making it all the more appealing. I have just found out that the title is leasehold as opposed to freehold. I would have thought that there are issues buying a house with a leasehold title in Hoxton. Conveyancing solicitors have are about to be appointed. Will my lawyers set out the risks of buying a leasehold house in Hoxton ?

The majority of houses in Hoxton 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 apparent that you are purchasing in Hoxton so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Hoxton conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they are used to transacting on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the unexpired lease term. As a tenant you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease comes with conditions for example obtaining the freeholder’sconsent to carry out changes to the property. You may also be required to pay a service charge towards the upkeep of the communal areas where the house is located on an estate. Your conveyancer will advise you fully on all the issues.

I am employed by a busy estate agent office in Hoxton where we see a few flat sales put at risk due to short leases. I have been given contradictory information from local Hoxton conveyancing solicitors. Can you shed some light as to whether the vendor of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities 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 start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the buyer need not have to sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done prior to, or at the same time as completion of the sale.

An alternative approach is 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 finding a Hoxton conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

When appointing a solicitor for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Hoxton conveyancing practice) it is most important that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We suggested that you make enquires with two or three firms including non Hoxton conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be useful:

• How many lease extensions have they completed in Hoxton in the last year?
• What are the charges for lease extension conveyancing?

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Hoxton from the point of view of speeding up the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Hoxton can be avoided where you appoint lawyers the minute your agents start marketing the property and request that they start to collate the leasehold documentation needed by the purchasers’ lawyers.
• A minority of Hoxton leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is able to meet the yearly 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 solicitors.
• If there is a history of any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are settled before the property is marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where there is a current dispute. You may have to bite the bullet and pay 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 purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as historic as opposed to unsettled.
• If you hold a share in a the freehold, you should ensure that you have the original share document. Organising a duplicate share certificate is often a time consuming process and delays many a Hoxton conveyancing transaction. Where a new share is necessary, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (if relevant) for this at the earliest opportunity.
• You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be advisable double-check by asking your solicitors. A purchaser's lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the lease term is less than 80 years. It is therefore important at an as soon as possible that you identify whether the lease term requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

I have tried to negotiate informally with with my landlord for a lease extension without success. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal decide on such matters? Can you recommend a Hoxton conveyancing firm to assist?

in cases where there is a missing freeholder or if there is dispute 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 arrive at the premium.

An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a Hoxton premises is 137 & 139 Haberdasher Street in December 2013. The Tribunal determines in accordance with section 48 and Schedule 13 of the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 that the premium for the extended lease for each Property should be £12,350.00. This case related to 2 flats. The the number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 72.39 years.

I invested in buying a split level flat in Hoxton, conveyancing was carried out 8 years ago. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Comparable properties in Hoxton with a long lease are worth £260,000. The ground rent is £50 invoiced annually. The lease ends on 21st October 2096

You have 70 years left to run the likely cost is going to range between £13,300 and £15,400 plus costs.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to supply a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed investigations. Do not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt additional issues that need to be taken into account and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward based on this information before getting professional advice.