Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only 68 years unexpired on my flat in Westbury On Trym. I now wish to extend my lease but my landlord is missing. What options are available to me?

If you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be granted an extra 90 years by the magistrate. However, you will be required to prove that you have made all reasonable attempts to locate the landlord. In some cases a specialist may be useful to try and locate and prepare an expert document which can be accepted by the court as proof that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a property lawyer in relation to devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing Westbury On Trym.

Due to complete next month on a leasehold property in Westbury On Trym. Conveyancing solicitors assured me that they will have a report out to me within the next couple of days. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Westbury On Trym should include some of the following:

• Do you need to have carpet in the flat or are you allowed wood flooring?

I am attracted to a couple of apartments in Westbury On Trym which have about fifty years unexpired on the lease term. Will this present a problem?

There are plenty of short leases in Westbury On Trym. The lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the premises for a period of time. As the lease gets shorter the value of the lease decreases and results in it becoming more expensive to extend the lease. For this reason it is advisable to increase the term of the lease. More often than not it is difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease because mortgage lenders less inclined to grant a loan on such properties. Lease enfranchisement can be a difficult process. We advise that you seek professional assistance from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this area

Last month I purchased a leasehold property in Westbury On Trym. Do I have any liability for service charges relating to a period prior to completion of my purchase?

Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. However, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. It is an essential part 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 work for a reputable estate agent office in Westbury On Trym where we have witnessed a number of flat sales derailed due to short leases. I have been given contradictory information from local Westbury On Trym conveyancing firms. Can you confirm whether the vendor of a flat can initiate the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

As long as the seller has owned the lease 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. This means that the buyer can avoid having to wait 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.

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.

I am the registered owner of a studio flat in Westbury On Trym, conveyancing having been completed in 2010. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Equivalent properties in Westbury On Trym with a long lease are worth £251,000. The ground rent is £50 invoiced every year. The lease finishes on 21st October 2096

With just 72 years left to run we estimate the premium for your lease extension to range between £8,600 and £9,800 plus costs.

The figure above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure without more detailed due diligence. Do not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional issues that need to be taken into account and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not take any other action placing reliance on this information without first getting professional advice.

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Lease Extensions in Westbury On Trym