I have recently realised that I have 68 years unexpired on my flat in Leytonstone. I am keen to get lease extension but my landlord is missing. What are my options?

On the basis that 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 lengthened by the Court. However, you will be required to prove that you or your lawyers have made all reasonable attempts to find the freeholder. On the whole an enquiry agent may be useful to try and locate and prepare a report to be accepted by the court as proof that the freeholder can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer both on investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing Leytonstone.

I today plan to offer on a house that seems to meet my requirements, at a reasonable figure which is making it more attractive. I have just been informed that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are particular concerns buying a leasehold house in Leytonstone. Conveyancing advisers have are about to be instructed. Will my lawyers set out the implications of buying a leasehold house in Leytonstone ?

Most houses in Leytonstone are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area can help the conveyancing process. it is apparent that you are buying in Leytonstone in which case you should be shopping around for a Leytonstone conveyancing solicitor and check that they have experience in dealing with leasehold houses. First 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 such as requiring the freeholder’spermission to conduct alterations. It may be necessary to pay a contribution towards the maintenance of the communal areas where the house is part of an estate. Your conveyancer will appraise you on the various issues.

I am employed by a busy estate agent office in Leytonstone where we have experienced a few flat sales derailed as a result of short leases. I have received inconsistent advice from local Leytonstone conveyancing firms. Can you shed some light as to whether the seller of a flat can commence the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

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 proposed purchaser can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. 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 disposal of the property.

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 choosing a Leytonstone conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a conveyancer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Leytonstone conveyancing practice) it is imperative that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We suggested that you talk with several firms including non Leytonstone conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be useful:

• How experienced is the firm with lease extension legislation?
• Can they put you in touch with client in Leytonstone who can give a testimonial?

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Leytonstone from the perspective of speeding up the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Leytonstone can be reduced if you instruct lawyers the minute you market your property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers conveyancers.
• The majority freeholders or managing agents in Leytonstone levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should discover the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The typical amount of time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most common cause of frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Leytonstone.
• If you have had any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are settled before the property is marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where there is a current dispute. You may have to bite the bullet and pay any arrears of service charge or resolve 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 are still duty bound to disclose particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as over rather than unresolved.
• If you hold a share in a the freehold, you should make sure that you hold the original share document. Organising a duplicate share certificate is often a time consuming process and delays many a Leytonstone conveyancing deal. If a duplicate share is necessary, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (if relevant) for this as soon as possible.
• You may think that you are aware of the number of years left on your lease but it would be wise to double-check by asking your conveyancers. A purchaser's conveyancer will be unlikely to recommend their client to to exchange contracts if the remaining number of years is under 75 years. In the circumstances it is essential at an early stage that you consider whether the lease for your property needs extending. 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 to extend my lease without any joy. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal decide on such matters? Can you recommend a Leytonstone conveyancing firm to act on my behalf?

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

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement case for a Leytonstone premises is 36 New Wanstead in August 2010. The Tribunal arrived at a valuation of the premium for the freehold of £22,359. This case was in relation to 2 flats. The the number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 73.92 years.

I inherited a leasehold flat in Leytonstone, conveyancing formalities finalised half a dozen years ago. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Similar flats in Leytonstone with a long lease are worth £226,000. The ground rent is £50 invoiced every year. The lease terminates on 21st October 2076

With 50 years left to run we estimate the premium for your lease extension to be between £37,100 and £42,800 plus legals.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed due diligence. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt other issues that need to be considered and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward based on this information without first getting professional advice.