I've found a house that seems to be perfect, at a great price which is making it all the more appealing. I have just been informed that it's a leasehold as opposed to freehold. I am assuming that there are issues buying a leasehold house in Arthog. Conveyancing lawyers have are soon to be appointed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Arthog are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor used to dealing with such properties who can help the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are purchasing in Arthog so you should seriously consider looking for a Arthog conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they have experience in transacting on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the number of years remaining. Being a leaseholder you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want to the property. The lease will likely included provisions such as obtaining the freeholder’spermission to conduct changes to the property. You may also be required to pay a maintenance charge towards the upkeep of the estate where the house is part of an estate. Your solicitor will appraise you on the various issues.

I own a leasehold house in Arthog. Conveyancing and Bank of Scotland mortgage went though with no issue. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1992. The conveyancing practitioner in Arthog who acted for me is not around.What should I do?

The first thing you should do is make enquiries of HMLR to make sure that this person is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. There is no need to incur the fees of a Arthog conveyancing practitioner to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. You should note that regardless, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I am attracted to a two apartments in Arthog which have in the region of 50 years remaining on the leases. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

There is no doubt about it. A leasehold flat in Arthog is a deteriorating asset as a result of the shortening lease. The closer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it adversely affects the marketability of the property. The majority of purchasers and mortgage companies, leases with less than 75 years become less and less marketable. On a more positive note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the property for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of property with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Arthog conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. A more straightforward and quicker method of extending would be to contact your landlord directly and sound him out on the prospect of extending the lease They may agree to a smaller lump sum and an increase in the ground rent, but to shorter extension terms in return. You need to ensure that any new terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.

What advice can you give us when it comes to appointing a Arthog conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a solicitor for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Arthog conveyancing firm) it is most important that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We advise that you make enquires with several firms including non Arthog conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions could be of use:

• How familiar is the practice with lease extension legislation?

What are the common problems that you see in leases for Arthog properties?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Arthog. Most leases are unique and drafting errors can result in certain sections are missing. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the premises
• A duty to insure the building
• A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
• 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. Birmingham Midshires, Bank of Scotland, and Platform Home Loans Ltd 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 does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to provide security, obliging the buyer to withdraw.

Arthog Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Questions you should ask Prior to buying

You should be aware that where the lease has no more than 80 years it will impact the salability of the apartment. Check with your mortgage company that they are happy with remaining years on the lease. A short lease means that you will almost definitely have to extend the lease at some point and you need to have some idea of how much this will be. For most Arthoglease extensions you would need to own the property for a couple of years before you are legally able to carry out a lease extension. Is there a share of the freehold? The prefered form of lease structure is if the freehold reversion is owned by the leaseholders. In this scenario the lessees have control and notwithstanding that a managing agent is often retained if the building is larger than a house conversion, the managing agent retained by the leaseholders.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Arthog