The Landlord will notify the Leaseholders by serving a Section 5 Notice. This Notice must be responded to by a majority of the tenants by the date specified in the Notice (being at least 2 months from the date of the Notice) otherwise the Landlord can dispose of the freehold to a third party or sell at an auction without the leaseholders’ collective right to acquire the property reserved.
If you are in receipt of a Section 5 Notice it is very important to obtain legal advice as soon as possible.
Our fixed fees to:
start from £600 plus VAT depending on the size of your Building. In addition official copy entries of £8 per flat will have to be paid and the Land Registry will charge £40 to update the title.
For tax purposes we would advise that all participating tenants extend their leases to 999 years immediately after completion of the freehold acquisition. As such there can be no increase in value between when the freehold is acquired and when the leases are granted and therefore there can be no chargeable gain. You should seek tax advice in this regard if you have any concerns. We would extend to 999 years, reduce ground rent to nil and carry out any modernisation required. If the leases are extended immediately, the consideration you pay for the freehold is deemed to be payment for the lease extension also. Our additional costs for the New Leases start from £550 plus VAT and disbursements depending on the size of your building.
James Compton
Partner, Head of Enfranchisement
+44 (0)20 7482 9513
jc@comptons.co.uk
Sarah Jennings
Partner
+44 (0)20 3869 4464
sarahj@comptons.co.uk
