Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Alfreton:

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When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Alfreton, you will need to chose a conveyancing solicitor with leasehold experience. Whether your lender is to be Lloyds, RBS or Nationwide make sure you find a lawyer on their panel. Find a Alfreton conveyancing lawyer with our search tool

Alfreton leasehold conveyancing: Q and A’s

I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Alfreton. Before diving in I would like to find out the number of years remaining on the lease.

Assuming the lease is registered - and almost all are in Alfreton - then the leasehold title will always include the short particulars of the lease, namely the date; the term; and the original parties. From a conveyancing perspective such details then enable any prospective buyer and lender to confirm that any lease they are looking at is the one relevant to that title.For any other purpose, such as confirming how long the term was granted for and calculating what is left, then the register should be sufficient on it's own.

I've found a house that appears to tick a lot of boxes, at a great figure which is making it more attractive. I have subsequently been informed that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are particular concerns buying a house with a leasehold title in Alfreton. Conveyancing lawyers have are soon to be instructed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Alfreton are freehold rather than leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer used to dealing with such properties who can help the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are purchasing in Alfreton in which case you should be shopping around for a Alfreton conveyancing practitioner and be sure that they are used to dealing with leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the unexpired lease term. As a tenant you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease comes with conditions for example requiring the freeholder’sconsent to conduct alterations. It may be necessary to pay a service charge towards the maintenance of the communal areas where the property is located on an estate. Your solicitor should advise you fully on all the issues.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold house in Alfreton. Conveyancing and Godiva Mortgages Ltd mortgage organised. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the freehold. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1998. The conveyancing practitioner in Alfreton who acted for me is not around.Do I pay?

First contact HMLR to make sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. It is not necessary to instruct a Alfreton conveyancing firm to do this as it can be done on-line for a few pound. You should note that in any event, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

Can you offer any advice when it comes to finding a Alfreton conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a property lawyer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Alfreton conveyancing practice) it is imperative that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We recommend that you make enquires with several firms including non Alfreton conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions could be of use:

  • How familiar is the practice with lease extension legislation?
  • How many lease extensions have they conducted in Alfreton in the last twenty four months?

    • Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Alfreton from the point of view of saving time on the sale process?

    • A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Alfreton can be bypassed where you get in touch lawyers the minute you market your property and request that they start to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers lawyers.
    • Many freeholders or Management Companies in Alfreton charge for providing management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should discover the fee that they propose to charge. The management information can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The typical amount of time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most usual cause of frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Alfreton.
  • If you have carried out any alterations to the premises would they have required Landlord’s consent? Have you, for example laid down wooden flooring? Alfreton leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or laying down wooden flooring require a licence issued by the Landlord acquiescing to such changes. If you fail to have the consents in place you should not communicate with the landlord without contacting your lawyer in the first instance.
  • If you have had conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are settled before the property is marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be nervous about purchasing a flat where a dispute is ongoing. You will have to accept that you will have to discharge any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal details of the dispute to the buyers, but it is better to present the dispute as over rather than ongoing.
  • If you are supposed to have a share in the Management Company, you should make sure that you have the original share certificate. Arranging a replacement share certificate can be a lengthy process and slows down many a Alfreton home move. If a duplicate share certificate is needed, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (where relevant) for this as soon as possible.

    • Alfreton Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - A selection of Queries Prior to Purchasing

      Many Alfreton leasehold flats will incur a service charge for the upkeep of the building levied by the freeholder. If you buy the flat you will have to pay this charge, usually in instalments during the year. This may differ from two or three hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for bigger purpose-built blocks. In all probability there will be a rentcharge for you to pay yearly, this is usually not a large figure, say around £50-£100 but you need to check as sometimes it could be many hundreds of pounds. Is anyone aware of any major works on the horizon that could increase the service fees? Generally speaking the outlay for major works tend not to be incorporated into the maintenance charges, although some managing agents in Alfreton obliged leaseholders to pay into a sinking fund created for the specific purpose of establishing a fund for major repairs or maintenance.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Alfreton