Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Abertridwr:

Get a Quote

Any conveyancing solicitor can theoretically handle your leasehold conveyancing in Abertridwr, your mortgage provider may not be willing to work with them if the firm are not on their list of approved solicitors for conveyancing

Abertridwr leasehold conveyancing: Q and A’s

I have just appointed agents to market my basement flat in Abertridwr.Conveyancing has not commenced but I have just received a yearly service charge demand – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should discharge the service charge as normal because all ground rent and service charges will be apportioned on completion, so you will be reimbursed by the buyer for the period running from after the completion date to the next payment date. Most managing agents will not acknowledge the buyer until the service charges have been paid and are up to date so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

I've recently bought a leasehold house in Abertridwr. 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. Strange as it may seem, 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 be sure 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).

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Abertridwr with the purpose of expediting the sale process?

  • A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Abertridwr can be avoided where you get in touch lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information needed by the purchasers’ solicitors.
  • Many freeholders or managing agents in Abertridwr charge for providing management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should discover the actual amount of the charges. The management pack can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most usual reason for frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Abertridwr.
  • Some Abertridwr leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. The bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is financially capable of paying the annual service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their lawyers.
  • If there is a history of conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is essential that these are settled before the property is put on the market. The buyers and their solicitors will be concerned about purchasing a property where there is an ongoing dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to pay any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to present the dispute as over rather than unresolved.
  • If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should ensure that you have the original share document. Obtaining a replacement share certificate can be a time consuming formality and slows down many a Abertridwr home move. If a new share is necessary, do contact the company officers or managing agents (where relevant) for this at the earliest opportunity.

    • Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on the sale of our £350000 garden flat in Abertridwr in six days. The management company has quoted £300 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and previous years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Abertridwr?

    Abertridwr conveyancing on leasehold flats more often than not requires the buyer’s conveyancer submitting questions for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is not legally bound to respond to such questions most will be content to do so. They are entitled invoice a reasonable charge for responding to enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average fee for the paperwork that you are referring to is £350, in some cases it exceeds £800. The management information fee required by the landlord must be sent together with a synopsis of rights and obligations in respect of administration fees, without which the charge is not strictly payable. In reality one has no choice but to pay whatever is demanded should you wish to complete the sale of your home.

    Are there common defects that you encounter in leases for Abertridwr properties?

    There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Abertridwr. Most leases are individual and drafting errors can result in certain sections are erroneous. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

    • Repairing obligations to or maintain elements of the premises
    • A duty to insure the building
    • Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
    • Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

    A defective lease will likely cause issues when trying to sell a property as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Accord Mortgages Ltd, Leeds Building Society, and Clydesdale all have express requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is defective they may refuse to provide security, forcing the purchaser to withdraw.

    I purchased a 2 bed flat in Abertridwr, conveyancing having been completed 9 years ago. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Equivalent properties in Abertridwr with a long lease are worth £267,000. The ground rent is £50 levied per year. The lease expires on 21st October 2104

    With only 79 years unexpired we estimate the premium for your lease extension to range between £9,500 and £11,000 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

    The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to advice on the actual costs in the absence of comprehensive investigations. Do not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional issues that need to be taken into account and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action based on this information without first getting professional advice.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Abertridwr