Lease extension payment and pain in the !!! neighbours!

[adproko28]

Here is my dilemma
I brought a one bed flat a year ago = its the entire top floor of a house
- it needed loads doing to it and after spending around £20K its all up
to scratch
About a month after I moved in I realised I had nightmare neighbours -
shouting at each other every night, music blaring loudly til 5am every
other night, I have had to call the police 3 times in living there in a
year cos he has gone mental smashing stuff up and beating her up. Now as
my bedroom is above their kitchen I hear a lot!
Now she never leaves the flat but she owns it and he (her boyfriend)
drinks every night at the pub up the road but they are the freeholders!
Recently I put the flat on the market but had to buyers who mucked me
about and i have found out the lease is down to 78 years.
I am now looking at taking the flat off the market and extending the
lease for 90 years and also looking to do a loft extension so I can get
another double bedroom with ensuite (thus giving me a good nights sleep!)
I was going to offer them some money and request a share of the freehold
as I always maintain the front garden and have just had to pay to get the
guttering cleaned
Can someone please advise me on what's best to do
P.S For the record I have told the council and they have said that I need
to monitor the noise and then call them and they will take action - the
only reason I haven't done it yet is cos I was selling it


Do I sell for a lot less
Do I have to ask them if I can do my loft entension(its mine and it will
only be velux widnows not dormer)

[jeffrey]

Here is my dilemma...

Recently I...found out the lease is down to 78 years.
I am now looking at taking the flat off the market and extending the
lease for 90 years and also looking to do a loft extension so I can get
another double bedroom with ensuite (thus giving me a good nights sleep!)
I was going to offer them some money and request a share of the freehold
as I always maintain the front garden and have just had to pay to get the
guttering cleaned...
Do I have to ask them if I can do my loft entension(its mine and it will
only be velux widnows not dormer)
1. Yes- you need to extend the lease. The 1993 Act contemplates a 90yr. extension.
2. However, as you purchased only a year ago, you do not yet have the legal right. It necessitates a two-year leasehold ownership period.
3. Nevertheless, approach L and try to negotiate. Usually, £££ will induce L to allow earlier extension. As it would not be stautory, you could seek >90 yrs. more.
4. The new Deed of Surrender and Re-grant could incorporate right to loft extension and, maybe, a Transfer of f/r so as to give you 50% of it.

[adproko28]

they woudl want miore money for the share of freehold and as I maintain the property anyway I dont think I will bother

Also got back last night and baliffs left a noticeonthe door saying they were going to go round today with a locksmith and force entry as they havent paid council tax and owe £1K! I just rang the baliff and said he cant force entry as its my front door too but I will them in to gain access to downstairs

I have written up a letter stating that I want to entend the lease and by law it woudl be 90 years taking it to 165 years and I will offer them £5K and pay for their solicitor costs to sort out the paperwork, If they refuse to do this then i will take it to the Leasehold tribunal.

I am going to send it before I go on holiday for Xmas giving them a month to reply. I dont think I shoudl put on there about the loft entension as they may try and charge me even more money!

[cmcbugg]

I have written up a letter stating that I want to entend the lease and by law it woudl be 90 years taking it to 165 years and I will offer them £5K and pay for their solicitor costs to sort out the paperwork, If they refuse to do this then i will take it to the Leasehold tribunal.!As per point 2 above you don't have any legal right to buy the leasehold as you have not owned the lease for > 2 years - so I don't think you'll be able to approach the leasehold tribunal. Your only choice at this point is for them to voluntarily agree to extend the lease.
Sounds like you're not in an ideal situation - so good luck - hopefully they'll want some cash quick and you can get a good deal.

[jeffrey]

I have written up a letter stating that I want to entend the lease and by law it woudl be 90 years taking it to 165 years and I will offer them £5K and pay for their solicitor costs to sort out the paperwork, If they refuse to do this then i will take it to the Leasehold tribunal.

Not quite; I did explain that you have no legal right to extend, at least not until a further year has elapsed. As a result:
a. "by law it would be 90 years" is wrong, because a contractual (non-statutory) extension can be whatever L and T agree; and
b. "I will take it to the LVT" is wrong too, because you can't yet.

[adproko28]

well this is where is gets REALLY interesting after going through the 40 pages of paper that are all about the lease I can see that they have broken about 8 of the clauses

a few which state the following:

No musical intrument televeions or audio equipment or other noise making instrument of any kind shall be played or shall any loud singing be practiced in the said flat as to cause annoyance to the owners lessees and occupiers of the other said flat comprised in the building or so as to be audible outside the flat between the hours of 11pm and 9am

Not to do or permit or suffer to be done in or upon the demised premises anythign which may be become a nuisance annoyance or cause damange or inconvinience to the landlord or tennants of the landlord or neighbouring owners or occupiers or whereby any insuurance for the time effected onthe said building may be rendered void or voidable or the rate of premium may be increased!


So I have poken to my solicitor and he has said this is my trump card!

I am writing them a letter as I will have been there 2 years in June and I wondered if I said get back to me by january this gives us enough time to go back and forth and then I can action it as of June 2008!

[jeffrey]

Eh? Who has broken the lease? These sound like covenants by lessee (e.g. you) rather than by lessor (e.g. landlord as reversioner).

[adproko28]

please re-read Jeffrey it quite clearly says by the landlord or tennants of the landlord - my solicitor has said that is me

[jeffrey]

please re-read Jeffrey it quite clearly says by the landlord or tennants of the landlord - my solicitor has said that is me
Even your latest post is garbled.
Look: you are a lessee (= "tenant"). Who is/are the "they" who have "broken about eight of the [lessee] clauses"?

[adproko28]

cause annoyance to the owners lessees and occupiers of the other said flat comprised in the building

This says as I read it that neither myself or they shoudl cause noise or nuisance???

Correct? That is what my solicitor has said as well now he has read through it

[jeffrey]

cause annoyance to the owners lessees and occupiers of the other said flat comprised in the building

This says as I read it that neither myself or they shoudl cause noise or nuisance???

Correct? That is what my solicitor has said as well now he has read through it
OK. So other lessees have committed breaches of the lease.
This does not impact on your wish to extend lease nor on the temporary absence of statutory rights.

[adproko28]

No but ever other night they are keeping me awake with their rows and thweir hi fi on til 6am and them singing an shouting and I dont see why I shoudl have to go through it.
This is making me depressed! Its made me put the flat on the market when I absolutely LOVE the flat! Its massive

I have wwritten the freeholders (the ones that are making this noise) a lettter where i state that i want to extend the lease, I need access to the gutters out the back as it has rotted my window sills and I want to put two velux windows in the roof to do a loft entension but this in no way will intrude on them or be extending the property in any which way.

If they refuse me to do this then I will make sure that every suingle bit of noise they make I report to the councila nd the police (there is a 24 hour noise nusiance watch in my area) and make them pay for making me so depressed