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Leasehold conveyancing in Aston on Trent 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 Aston on Trent and throughout next step up in loc. The lawyers we recommend have been approved by your lender so use our search tool to check.

Top Five Questions relating to Aston on Trent leasehold conveyancing

I want to sublet my leasehold apartment in Aston on Trent. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask him. Is permission from the freeholder required?

Even though your previous Aston on Trent conveyancing lawyer is no longer available you can review your lease to check if you are permitted to let out the apartment. The accepted inference is that if the deeds are silent, subletting is permitted. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you need to seek consent via your landlord or some other party prior to subletting. The net result is you not allowed to sublet in the absence of prior permission. Such consent should not be unreasonably turned down. If the lease prohibits you from letting out the property you will need to ask your landlord for their consent.

I have just appointed agents to market my basement flat in Aston on Trent.Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon but I have just had a quarterly service charge invoice – Do I pay up?

It best that you pay the service charge as normal because all ground rent and service charges will be apportioned on completion, so you will be reimbursed by the buyer for the period running from after the completion date to the next payment date. Most management companies will not acknowledge the buyer unless the service charges have been paid and are up to date so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

I've recently bought a leasehold house in Aston on Trent. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before my ownership?

Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. Strange as it may seem, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to be sure 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 employed by a long established estate agency in Aston on Trent where we have experienced a number of flat sales derailed as a result of short leases. I have been given conflicting advice from local Aston on Trent conveyancing firms. Can you confirm whether the vendor of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

Provided that the seller has owned the lease 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. This means that the buyer need not have to sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done 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 purchaser.

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Aston on Trent with the intention of saving time on the sale process?

  • Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Aston on Trent can be reduced if you get in touch lawyers as soon as you market your property and request that they start to collate the leasehold documentation needed by the buyers lawyers.
  • In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s permission? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Aston on Trent leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or addition of wooden flooring necessitate a licence from the Landlord acquiescing to such changes. Where you fail to have the approvals in place do not contact the landlord without contacting your solicitor before hand.
  • A minority of Aston on Trent leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. 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. Any bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are able to meet 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 actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their solicitors.
  • If there is a history of any disputes with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are settled prior to the flat being marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be warry about purchasing a flat where there is an ongoing dispute. You may have to bite the bullet and pay 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 ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to present the dispute as historic rather than ongoing.
  • If you have the benefit of shareholding in the Management Company, you should make sure that you are holding the original share certificate. Organising a replacement share certificate can be a time consuming process and delays many a Aston on Trent conveyancing transaction. Where a duplicate share is necessary, do contact the company officers or managing agents (where relevant) for this sooner rather than later.

    • I acquired a leasehold flat in Aston on Trent, conveyancing formalities finalised 2004. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Similar flats in Aston on Trent with a long lease are worth £185,000. The ground rent is £60 levied per year. The lease finishes on 21st October 2071

    You have 51 years unexpired we estimate the premium for your lease extension to span between £33,300 and £38,400 as well as legals.

    The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs without more comprehensive investigations. Do not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be other issues that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward based on this information before getting professional advice.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Aston on Trent