I only have 72 years left on my flat in Ruthin. I now wish to get lease extension but my landlord is absent. What are my options?

If you meet the appropriate requirements, 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. You will be obliged to prove that you have made all reasonable attempts to track down the lessor. In some cases a specialist may be useful to try and locate and to produce an expert document to be accepted by the court as evidence that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a property lawyer both on investigating the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Ruthin.

I’m about to sell my garden apartment in Ruthin.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just had a half-yearly service charge invoice – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should pay the service charge 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 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.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold house in Ruthin. Conveyancing and Santander mortgage are in place. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1996. The conveyancing practitioner in Ruthin 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 indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. There is no need to incur the fees of a Ruthin conveyancing firm to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. You should note that in any event, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

What advice can you give us when it comes to choosing a Ruthin conveyancing firm to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

If you are instructing a property lawyer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Ruthin conveyancing firm) it is most important that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We suggested that you speak with two or three firms including non Ruthin conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions might be helpful:

• How many lease extensions has the firm completed in Ruthin in the last year?

What are the legal fees for lease extension conveyancing?

All being well we will complete the sale of our £275000 maisonette in Ruthin in just under a week. The managing agents has quoted £396 for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and 3 years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Ruthin?

For most leasehold sales in Ruthin conveyancing will involve, queries regarding the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :

• Answering pre-exchange questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Ruthin
• Supplying insurance information
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your solicitor will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Ruthin leasehold premises is £350. For Ruthin conveyancing transactions it is customary for the seller to pay for these costs. The landlord or their agents are under no legal obligation to answer such questions most will be willing to do so - albeit often at exorbitant prices where the fees bear little relation to the work involved. Unfortunately there is no law that requires fixed charges for administrative tasks. Neither is there any legal time frame by which they are required to supply answers.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Ruthin - Sample of Questions you should consider Prior to buying

Are there any major works in the near future that could increase the maintenance fees? The best form of lease structure is if the freehold interest is owned by the leaseholders. In this scenario the lessees have being in charge if their destiny and although a managing agent is usually employed where it is larger than a house conversion, the managing agent is directed by the tenants. Many Ruthin leasehold apartments will be liable to pay a service bill for the upkeep of the building set on behalf of the landlord. Should you acquire the property you will have to pay this contribution, normally periodically during the year. This can be anything from two or three hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for buildings with lifts and large communal areas. There will also be a ground rent to be met annual, ordinarily this is not a significant sum, say around £25-£75 but you need to check it because on occasion it can be prohibitively expensive.

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Lease Extensions in Ruthin