There are only 68 years unexpired on my lease in West London. I now wish to get lease extension but my landlord is missing. What are my options?

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 lengthened by the magistrate. However, you will be required to prove that you or your lawyers have made all reasonable attempts to find the lessor. In some cases a specialist may be useful to conduct investigations and prepare an expert document which can be accepted by the court as evidence that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a solicitor in relation to investigating the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing West London.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold flat in West London. Conveyancing and Barnsley Building Society mortgage are in place. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1995. The conveyancing practitioner in West London who acted for me is not around.Any advice?

The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to make sure that this person is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. You do not need to incur the fees of a West London conveyancing solicitor to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

Can you offer any advice when it comes to finding a West London conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

When appointing a solicitor for your lease extension (regardless if they are a West London conveyancing practice) it is imperative that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We suggested that you make enquires with several firms including non West London conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be helpful:

• How experienced is the practice with lease extension legislation?
• If the firm is not ALEP accredited then why not?

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in West London with the purpose of speeding up the sale process?

• Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in West London can be avoided where you instruct lawyers the minute you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers conveyancers.
• Many landlords or managing agents in West London charge for providing management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should discover the actual amount of the charges. The management pack sought as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most frequent cause of frustration in leasehold conveyancing in West London.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s consent? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Most leases in West London state that internal structural changes or installing wooden flooring necessitate a licence issued by the Landlord acquiescing to such changes. If you dont have the paperwork in place do not communicate with the landlord without checking with your lawyer in the first instance.
• Some West London leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this is the case, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is financially capable of paying 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 service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their solicitors.
• If there is a history of any disputes with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved prior to the flat being marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be warry about purchasing a property where a dispute is unsettled. You will have to accept that you will have to pay any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to completion of the sale. 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 clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as historic rather than unsettled.

I have attempted and failed to negotiate with my landlord to extend my lease without success. Can a leaseholder make an application to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal? Can you recommend a West London conveyancing firm to represent me?

Absolutely. We are happy to put you in touch with a West London conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a West London premises is 137 & 139 Haberdasher Street in December 2013. The Tribunal determines in accordance with section 48 and Schedule 13 of the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 that the premium for the extended lease for each Property should be £12,350.00. This case related to 2 flats. The the number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 72.39 years.

What are the common deficiencies that you witness in leases for West London properties?

Leasehold conveyancing in West London is not unique. All leases are individual and drafting errors can sometimes mean that certain clauses are not included. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain elements of the building
• Insurance obligations
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

You may have difficulties when selling your property if you have a defective lease as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Birmingham Midshires, Norwich and Peterborough Building Society, and Godiva Mortgages Ltd all have express requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to provide security, obliging the buyer to withdraw.

West London Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Queries before Purchasing

Does this lease have in excess of 82 years left? Is the freehold reversion owned collectively by the leaseholders? Best to be warned whether a new roof is being put on or some other significant cost is coming up to be shared amongst the leaseholders and will materially impact the level of the maintenance charges or require a specific invoice.