Ms B needed to extend the number of years remaining on her lease of her flat and so served a formal notice on her landlord under s42 of the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993.
The landlord did not dispute her right to buy an extension to the lease but made a counter proposal in respect of the price she offered.
The price could not be agreed and so the issue went to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) (“the F-t T”) for a decision.
Ms B did engage a valuer although not a solicitor and was represented by a relative who consulted LEASE a number of times for advice.
Ultimately the F-t T decided on a price for a lease extension that was closer to the offer put forward by Ms B than the counter-proposal made by her landlord.
With the assistance of advice from LEASE, there were also successful challenges to the amount of costs being claimed by the landlord.
Ms B commented: “We consulted LEASE on many occasions firstly to understand the process and how to proceed, in particular in respect of the initial valuation of the Lease Premium, statements in the landlord’s counter-notice, how to challenge the landlord’s professional fees (which we did successfully), whether to self-represent at the tribunal hearing, and upon the application to the Tribunal for an award of costs against the landlord (which was also successful).”
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