Recently asked questions relating to Badminton leasehold conveyancing
My fiance and I may need to rent out our Badminton garden flat temporarily due to taking a sabbatical. We used a Badminton conveyancing firm in 2002 but they have closed and we did not think at the time seek any guidance as to whether the lease prohibits the subletting of the flat. How do we find out?
Notwithstanding that your last Badminton conveyancing lawyer is no longer around you can check your lease to check if you are permitted to let out the premises. The rule is that if the deeds are non-specific, subletting is permitted. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you are obliged to obtain consent from your landlord or some other party before subletting. This means that you cannot sublet in the absence of prior permission. Such consent is not allowed to be unreasonably turned down. If your lease prohibits you from subletting the property you will need to ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.
I only have Seventy years remaining on my lease in Badminton. I now wish to get lease extension but my freeholder is missing. What options are available to me?
On the basis that you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be lengthened by the Court. You will be obliged to prove that you or your lawyers have done all that could be expected to track down the lessor. On the whole an enquiry agent may be helpful to conduct investigations and prepare a report to be used as evidence that the landlord is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer both on devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court covering Badminton.
I own a leasehold flat in Badminton. Conveyancing and Aldermore mortgage are in place. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1994. The conveyancing practitioner in Badminton who acted for me is not around.Any advice?
First contact the Land Registry to be sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. It is not necessary to instruct a Badminton conveyancing practitioner to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for £3. Rest assured that regardless, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.
I've recently bought a leasehold house in Badminton. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to 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. 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).
Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Badminton with the purpose of expediting the sale process?
- Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Badminton can be bypassed if you instruct lawyers as soon as you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold information needed by the buyers lawyers.
- A minority of Badminton leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are 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 actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their solicitors.
Leasehold Conveyancing in Badminton - Sample of Queries before buying
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Are there any major works anticipated that will add a premium to the service charges?
Does the lease include onerous restrictions?
Generally speaking the outlay for major works are not included within maintenance charges, albeit that some managing agents in Badminton obliged leaseholders to contribute towards a sinking fund created for the specific purpose of establishing a fund for major works.
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