Sample questions relating to Anlaby leasehold conveyancing
There are only 62 years unexpired on my lease in Anlaby. I now want to extend my lease but my freeholder is missing. What are my options?
If you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be granted an extra 90 years by the magistrate. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you have done all that could be expected to find the landlord. On the whole an enquiry agent may be useful to conduct investigations and prepare a report which can be accepted by the court as evidence that the landlord is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer in relation to proving the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Anlaby.
I today plan to offer on a house that appears to tick a lot of boxes, at a reasonable price which is making it all the more appealing. I have since found out that the title is leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are issues purchasing a house with a leasehold title in Anlaby. Conveyancing advisers have are soon to be appointed. Will they explain the issues?
The majority of houses in Anlaby are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can help the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are purchasing in Anlaby in which case you should be shopping around for a Anlaby conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they have experience in advising on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the unexpired lease term. Being a lessee you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions for example requiring the freeholder’spermission to carry out alterations. It may be necessary to pay a contribution towards the upkeep of the communal areas where the property is part of an estate. Your conveyancer will advise you fully on all the issues.
I am attracted to a couple of maisonettes in Anlaby both have in the region of 50 years remaining on the leases. Will this present a problem?
There are plenty of short leases in Anlaby. The lease is a right to use the property for a prescribed time frame. As the lease gets shorter the value of the lease deteriorate and results in it becoming more costly to acquire a lease extension. For this reason it is generally wise to increase the term of the lease. Sometimes it is difficult to sell a property with a short lease as mortgage companies less inclined to grant a loan on such properties. Lease enfranchisement can be a protracted process. We advise that you seek professional assistance from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this field
I am employed by a reputable estate agency in Anlaby where we have witnessed a few flat sales put at risk as a result of short leases. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Anlaby conveyancing firms. Please can you shed some light as to whether the vendor of a flat can commence the lease extension process 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 start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser 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 prior to, or at the same time as completion of the sale.
An alternative approach is 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.
What are the common deficiencies that you witness in leases for Anlaby properties?
Leasehold conveyancing in Anlaby is not unique. Most leases are unique and drafting errors can result in certain provisions are missing. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:
- Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the premises
- Insurance obligations
- Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
- Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage
A defective lease can cause problems when trying to sell a property primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Santander, Bank of Scotland, and Bank of Ireland 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.
Anlaby Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Queries Prior to buying
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Please note if it is less than 80 years it will have adverse implications on the value of the property. It is worth checking with your lender that they are happy with the length of the lease. A short lease means that you will probably have to extend the lease at some point and it is worth finding out how much this will be. For most Anlabylease extensions you will be be obliged to have owned the property for two years before you are entitled to exercise a lease extension.
Make sure you enquire if there is anything that is prohibited in the lease. By way of example plenty of leases prohibit pets being allowed in in a block in Anlaby. If you love the flatin Anlaby yet your cat can’t live with you then you will be faced difficult determination.
Best to be warned whether changing the roof or some other significant cost is pending to be shared amongst the leaseholders and will materially impact the level of the service costs or require a one off invoice.
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