Don’t Delay, Extend Your Lease Today
“Doing nothing is not an option if you want to protect your home”.
This excellent article by John Greenwood appeared in the Daily Telegraph on 5th February. We agree completely with its advice that homeowners take prompt action to protect their most important asset .
While ‘leasehold’ may seem to be an archaic form of property title, the fact is that leasehold title is still here in 2012. It has existed for 926 years since the Doomsday Book in 1086, and it will not go away. In spite of the wishes of many, which we sympathise with, the English are stuck with Leasehold. But , we can help.
The Common Hold Act of 2002 attempted to provide an alternative method of giving title to flat owners on a share of freehold basis but this has not been successful. This does not provide succour to the many leasehold flat owners – estimated at over 2.0 million in London alone.
Many flat owners do not know the rights which were given to them under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 as amended by the Common Hold Act 2002. It is our mission to assist flat owners acquire this knowledge and at the same time improve the market value of their property.
Flat owners, who own flats with leasehold title, have a right to extend their leases by a further 90 years and to have any ground rents reserved under the old lease reduced to zero. Flat owners may also join together and acquire their freehold. Freeholders cannot deny leasehold flat owners these rights.
Please call us whether you are a flat owner or a freeholder for a FREE 20 minute consultation. We are registered with and are Members of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors and are also Members of the Association of Leasehold Enfranchisement Practitioners (ALEP).
ALEP is a not-for-profit association that brings together solicitors, surveyors, enfranchisement intermediaries and managing agents working in the residential leasehold sector. ALEP promotes best practice by vetting members to ensure they have significant expertise in leasehold enfranchisement. Membership of ALEP acts as a badge of assurance so that flat owners and freeholders can be confident that they are employing professionals with the right level of expertise in handling potentially complex transactions.
For further information about ALEP telephone 08452252277 or visit www.alep.org.uk. You can also follow ALEP on twitter at twitter.com/alepofficial.
John Greenwood has written a number of excellent articles which can be read at http://journalisted.com/john-greenwood
Read the article here: Home owners urged to extend leaseholds
The Telegraph, 5 Feb 2012