Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only Sixty One years left on my lease in Preston Park. I now want to get lease extension but my landlord is can not be found. What options are available to me?

If 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 extended by the magistrate. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have made all reasonable attempts to locate the landlord. On the whole an enquiry agent may be helpful to carry out a search and prepare an expert document which can be used as proof that the freeholder can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a property lawyer both on proving the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Preston Park.

I have just appointed agents to market my 2 bed flat in Preston Park.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just received a quarterly service charge invoice – what should I do?

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. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

I am looking at a two apartments in Preston Park which have approximately forty five years remaining on the lease term. Will this present a problem?

There are plenty of short leases in Preston Park. The lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the premises for a period of time. As the lease shortens the marketability of the lease deteriorate and results in it becoming more expensive to extend the lease. For this reason it is generally wise to increase the term of the lease. It is often difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease as mortgage lenders may be reluctant to lend money on such properties. Lease extension can be a difficult process. We recommend you seek professional assistance from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this arena

Last month I purchased a leasehold flat in Preston Park. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to my ownership?

Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. Strange as it may seem, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to ensure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.

If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).

I am a negotiator for a busy estate agency in Preston Park where we have witnessed a few leasehold sales derailed as a result of short leases. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Preston Park conveyancing firms. Can you clarify whether the vendor of a flat can initiate 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 commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser 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 needs to be completed 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.

Preston Park Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Sample of Questions you should consider Prior to Purchasing

How many of the leaseholders are in arrears for their maintenance charge payments? How long is the Lease? The majority of Preston Park leasehold apartments will incur a service bill for the upkeep of the block set by the management company. If you purchase the flat you will have to pay this charge, usually periodically during the year. This may vary from two or three hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for blocks with lifts and large common grounds. There will also be a rentcharge for you to pay yearly, ordinarily this is not a exorbitant sum, say approximately £50-£100 but you should to check as sometimes it can be many hundreds of pounds.

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Lease Extensions in Preston Park