Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Alsager:

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Leasehold conveyancing in Alsager is more complex than freehold. Your home move will be smoother where you choose a lawyer with a wealth of experience of leasehold conveyancing in Alsager and throughout next step up in loc. The lawyers we recommend have been approved by your lender so use our search tool to check.

Recently asked questions relating to Alsager leasehold conveyancing

My husband and I may need to rent out our Alsager ground floor flat for a while due to taking a sabbatical. We instructed a Alsager conveyancing practice in 2001 but they have since shut and we did not have the foresight to get any guidance as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?

Even though your previous Alsager conveyancing lawyer is not available you can review your lease to check if it allows you to sublet the property. The rule is that if the lease is non-specific, subletting is allowed. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you are obliged to obtain consent via your landlord or other appropriate person before subletting. This means you not allowed to sublet without prior consent. The consent must not not be unreasonably refused ore delayed. If the lease prohibits you from subletting the property you will need to ask your landlord for their consent.

Looking forward to sign contracts shortly on a ground floor flat in Alsager. Conveyancing lawyers inform me that they report fully on Monday. What should I be looking out for?

Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Alsager should include some of the following:

  • The length of the lease term You should be advised as what happens when the lease ends, and aware of the importance of the 80 year mark
  • Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, landlord
  • Setting out your rights in relation to common areas in the building.For instance, does the lease contain a right of way over a path or hallways?
  • Repair and maintenance of the flat
  • The landlord’s rights to access the flat you be made aware that your landlord has rights of access and I know how much notice s/he must provide.
  • The landlord’s obligations to repair and maintain the building. It is important that you know who is responsible for the repair and maintenance of every part of the building
  • Responsibility for repairing the window frames For a comprehensive list of information to be included in your report on your leasehold property in Alsager please enquire of your conveyancer in ahead of your conveyancing in Alsager

    • I am a negotiator for a busy estate agency in Alsager where we see a number of leasehold sales derailed due to short leases. I have received inconsistent advice from local Alsager conveyancing solicitors. Could you confirm whether the vendor of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

    As long as the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the buyer need not have to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed before, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

    Alternatively, it may be possible to agree the lease extension with the freeholder either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the buyer.

    Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Alsager from the point of view of expediting the sale process?

    • A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Alsager can be bypassed if you appoint lawyers the minute your agents start marketing the property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the purchasers’ representatives.
    • Many landlords or Management Companies in Alsager charge for providing management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the actual amount of the charges. The management pack can be applied for as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most frequent cause of frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Alsager.
  • A minority of Alsager leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this is the case, it would be prudent to place the estate agents on notice 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 yearly 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 service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their solicitors.
  • If you have the benefit of shareholding in the Management Company, you should ensure that you are holding the original share certificate. Obtaining a re-issued share certificate is often a lengthy process and slows down many a Alsager home move. If a duplicate share certificate is required, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (where applicable) for this at the earliest opportunity.
  • You may think that you are aware of the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be advisable double-check by asking your lawyers. A purchaser's conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to where the remaining number of years is under 75 years. It is therefore essential at an early stage that you consider whether the lease term requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale.

    • Are there common deficiencies that you see in leases for Alsager properties?

    There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Alsager. All leases are unique and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain sections are not included. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

    • Repairing obligations to or maintain elements of the property
    • 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

    You may encounter difficulties when selling your property if you have a defective lease as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Birmingham Midshires, The Mortgage Works, and Bank of Ireland all have express conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is problematic they may refuse to grant the mortgage, forcing the purchaser to withdraw.

    Alsager Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Questions you should ask Prior to Purchasing

      You should be aware if it is no more than 80 years it will have adverse implications on the marketability of the apartment. It is worth checking with your bank that they are content with remaining years on the lease. A short lease means that you will almost definitely require a lease extension at some point and you need to have some idea of what this would cost. For most Alsagerlease extensions you would need to own the premises for a couple of years before you are entitled to carry out a lease extension. On the whole the outlay for major works are not included within maintenance charges, albeit that a few managing agents in Alsager obliged leaseholders to contribute towards a sinking fund created for the specific purpose of building a fund for larger works. You should want to find out as much as you can concerning the company managing the block as they can either make your living at the property much simpler or a lot more difficult. As the proprietor of a leasehold property you are frequently in the clutches of the managing agents from a financial perspective and when it comes to daily matters like the tidiness of the communal areas. Don't be afraid to ask other tenants whether they are happy with their management. Finally, investigate as to the dates that the maintenance charges are due to the relevant party and precisely what it includes.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Alsager