I have recently realised that I have 62 years remaining on my lease in Marks Gate. I need to get lease extension but my freeholder is absent. What should I do?

If you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be extended by the magistrate. You will be obliged to prove that you have done all that could be expected to locate the freeholder. In some cases a specialist would be useful to carry out a search and prepare 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 investigating the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Marks Gate.

Planning to sign contracts shortly on a leasehold property in Marks Gate. Conveyancing solicitors inform me that they are sending me a report next week. What should I be looking out for?

Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Marks Gate should include some of the following:

• Setting out your legal entitlements in respect of common areas in the block.For instance, does the lease grant a right of way over a path or staircase?
• Are you allowed to have a pet in the flat?
• You need to be told what counts as a Nuisance in the lease
• Ground rent - how much and when you need to pay, and also know whether this will change in the future
• Repair and maintenance of the flat
• I don't know whether the lease allows me to alter or improve anything in the flat - you should know whether it applies to all alterations or just structural alteration, and whether consent is required
• What the implications are if you breach a clause of your lease?

I have just appointed agents to market my ground floor apartment in Marks Gate.Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon but I have just had a quarterly service charge invoice – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

It best that you pay 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 managing agents 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. 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 Marks Gate with the aim of expediting the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Marks Gate can be reduced where you get in touch lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and request that they start to collate the leasehold documentation needed by the purchasers’ representatives.
• The majority freeholders or managing agents in Marks Gate levy fees for providing management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the fee that they propose to charge. The management information sought on or before finding a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The average time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most frequent reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Marks Gate.
• If you have carried out any alterations to the property would they have required Landlord’s approval? Have you, for example laid down wooden flooring? Most leases in Marks Gate state that internal structural changes or addition of wooden flooring necessitate a licence from the Landlord acquiescing to such works. Where you dont have the consents to hand do not contact the landlord without checking with your conveyancer in advance.
• Some Marks Gate leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers put in hand financial (bank) and professional references. The 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 actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their lawyers.
• If you have had conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved before the property is put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where there is an ongoing dispute. You may need to swallow your pride 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 prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to reveal the dispute as over as opposed to unsettled.

All being well we will complete the sale of our £ 225000 apartment in Marks Gate on Friday in a week. The freeholder has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and 3 years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge an administration fee for a flat conveyance in Marks Gate?

Marks Gate conveyancing on leasehold apartments normally necessitates the purchaser’s solicitor sending enquiries for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is not legally bound to answer such questions most will be willing to assist. They are entitled charge a reasonable charge for answering questions or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average costs for the paperwork that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some cases it is above £800. The management information fee demanded by the landlord must be accompanied by a summary of rights and obligations in relation to administration charges, without which the charge is technically not due. Reality however dictates that you have no option but to pay whatever is requested of you should you wish to sell the property.

Following months of dialogue we cannot agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Marks Gate. Does the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal have jurisdiction to calculate the appropriate figures?

You certainly can. We are happy to put you in touch with a Marks Gate conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Marks Gate premises is 49 Aldborough Road South in July 2012. The Tribunal decided that the premium payable for the grant of the new lease was £13,925 This case was in relation to 1 flat. The the number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 61.36 years.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Marks Gate - A selection of Queries before buying

Who are the managing agents? It is important to be aware whether changing the roof or some other major work is anticipated that will be shared by the tenants and may well materially impact the level of the maintenance fees or result in a specific payment.