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Leasehold conveyancing in Askam In Furness 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 Askam In Furness and across next step up in loc. The lawyers we recommend have been approved by your lender so use our search tool to check.

Askam In Furness leasehold conveyancing Example Support Desk Enquiries

I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Askam In Furness. Before diving in I would like to find out the unexpired term of the lease.

If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and 99.9% are in Askam In Furness - then the leasehold title will always include the basic details 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.

Looking forward to complete next month on a leasehold property in Askam In Furness. Conveyancing lawyers inform me that they will have a report out to me within the next couple of days. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

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

  • The physical extent of the property. This will be the flat itself but might include a roof space or basement if applicable.
  • Defining your rights in relation to common areas in the block.For instance, does the lease provide for a right of way over a path or staircase?
  • Are pets allowed in the flat?
  • You should have a good understanding of the insurance provisions
  • I don't know whether the lease allows me to alter or improve anything in the flat - you should know whether it applies to all alterations or just structural alteration, and whether consent is required
  • 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
  • What options are open to you if a neighbour is in violation of a provision in their lease? For details of the information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Askam In Furness please ask your solicitor in ahead of your conveyancing in Askam In Furness

    • I've recently bought a leasehold flat in Askam In Furness. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to completion of my purchase?

    In a situation 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. However, 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 ensure 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).

    I am a negotiator for a long established estate agency in Askam In Furness where we have experienced a number of leasehold sales jeopardised as a result of short leases. I have received inconsistent advice from local Askam In Furness conveyancing firms. Can you clarify whether the seller of a flat can initiate 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 kick-start 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 sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.

    An alternative approach is to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord 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 purchaser.

    Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Askam In Furness with the intention of expediting the sale process?

    • A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Askam In Furness can be reduced if you get in touch lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation needed by the purchasers’ solicitors.
    • The majority landlords or Management Companies in Askam In Furness levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should discover the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The typical amount of time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most frequent cause of frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Askam In Furness.
  • A minority of Askam In Furness 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 put in hand bank and professional references. The bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is able to meet 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 service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their lawyers.
  • If there is a history of any disputes with your landlord or managing agents it is essential that these are resolved prior to the flat being marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where there is an ongoing dispute. You may have to bite the bullet and discharge any arrears of service charge or settle 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 are still duty bound to disclose particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to present the dispute as historic as opposed to ongoing.
  • You may think that you are aware of the number of years left on your lease but you should double-check by asking your conveyancers. A buyer’s conveyancer will be unlikely to recommend their client to where the lease term is less than 80 years. In the circumstances it is important at an as soon as possible that you consider whether the lease term for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

    • I inherited a 1 bedroom flat in Askam In Furness, conveyancing having been completed in 2002. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Similar properties in Askam In Furness with a long lease are worth £192,000. The ground rent is £60 invoiced every year. The lease expires on 21st October 2088

    With just 64 years unexpired the likely cost is going to range between £15,200 and £17,600 plus professional fees.

    The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to advice on the actual costs without more detailed investigations. Do not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. 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. Neither should you take any other action placing reliance on this information before getting professional advice.

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    Lease Extensions in Askam In Furness