Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only Seventy years left on my flat in Middlewich. I now wish to get lease extension but my freeholder is absent. What are my options?

On the basis that 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 demonstrate that you or your lawyers have made all reasonable attempts to locate the lessor. On the whole an enquiry agent should be useful to try and locate and prepare an expert document to be used as evidence that the landlord can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a conveyancer both on proving the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Middlewich.

I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that appears to tick a lot of boxes, at a reasonable figure which is making it more attractive. I have since found out that it's a leasehold as opposed to freehold. I would have thought that there are issues buying a leasehold house in Middlewich. Conveyancing solicitors have are soon to be instructed. Will my lawyers set out the risks of buying a leasehold house in Middlewich ?

The majority of houses in Middlewich are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local conveyancer used to dealing with such properties who can assist with the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are purchasing in Middlewich so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Middlewich conveyancing practitioner and check that they are used to transacting on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the unexpired lease term. As a leaseholder you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions such as obtaining the landlord’spermission to carry out alterations. It may be necessary to pay a service charge towards the upkeep of the communal areas where the property is located on an estate. Your solicitor should appraise you on the various issues.

Back In 2006, I bought a leasehold house in Middlewich. Conveyancing and TSB mortgage organised. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1993. The conveyancing solicitor in Middlewich who previously acted has long since retired.What should I do?

First contact HMLR to be sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Middlewich conveyancing practitioner to do this as it can be done on-line for £3. You should note that regardless, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

I am looking at a couple of flats in Middlewich both have in the region of forty five years unexpired on the lease term. should I be concerned?

There are no two ways about it. A leasehold apartment in Middlewich is a wasting asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The nearer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it reduces the value of the property. For most buyers and banks, leases with less than eighty years become less and less attractive. On a more positive note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the property for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of premises with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Middlewich conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. A more straightforward and quicker method of extending would be to contact your landlord directly and sound him out on the prospect of extending the lease You may find he or she is happy to negotiate informally and willing to consider your offer straight off, without having to involve anyone else. This will save you time and money and it could help you reach a lower price on the lease. You need to ensure that any new terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.

I work for a long established estate agent office in Middlewich where we have experienced a number of leasehold sales jeopardised as a result of short leases. I have received inconsistent advice from local Middlewich conveyancing firms. Could you clarify whether the owner of a flat can start the lease extension process for the buyer?

As long as the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to kick-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 wait 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 simultaneously with completion of the sale.

An alternative approach is to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord 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.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Middlewich - Sample of Queries before buying

Its a good idea to discover as much as possible concerning the company managing the block as they will either make living at the property much easier or a lot more difficult. As the proprietor of a leasehold property you will be at the mercy of the managing agents from a financial perspective and when it comes to day to day matters like the upkeep of the communal areas. Enquire of prospective neighbours whether they are happy with their management. Finally, find out the dates that the maintenance charges are due to the relevant party and specifically how they are spending that money.