I am hoping to complete next month on a garden flat in Badminton. Conveyancing solicitors assured me that they are sending me a report on Monday. What should I be looking out for?

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

• You should be sent a copy of the lease

Back In 2008, I bought a leasehold flat in Badminton. Conveyancing and Nationwide Building Society mortgage went though with no issue. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1991. The conveyancing practitioner in Badminton who previously acted has now retired.Any advice?

The first thing you should do is contact the Land Registry to make sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. There is no need to instruct a Badminton conveyancing firm to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for a few pound. You should note that in any event, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

Last month I purchased a leasehold flat in Badminton. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to completion of my purchase?

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. 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 work for a reputable estate agency in Badminton where we see a few flat sales jeopardised as a result of short leases. I have received inconsistent advice from local Badminton conveyancing solicitors. Can you shed some light as to whether the seller of a flat can start the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

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. This means that the buyer can avoid having to wait 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done prior to, or simultaneously with completion of the sale.

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.

All being well we will complete the sale of our £125000 garden flat in Badminton next Wednesday . The freeholder has quoted £300 for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and previous years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in Badminton?

Badminton conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes usually requires the buyer’s solicitor sending enquiries for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to answer such questions the majority will be content to assist. They are entitled invoice a reasonable charge for responding to questions or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average fee for the paperwork that you are referring to is £350, in some transactions it exceeds £800. The management information fee invoiced by the landlord must be sent together with a synopsis of rights and obligations in relation to administration charges, without which the invoice is not strictly payable. In reality one has little choice but to pay whatever is requested of you if you want to complete the sale of your home.

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

It would be sensible to discover as much as possible about the company managing the block as they will either make your living at the property much easier or a lot more difficult. Being a leasehold owner you are frequently at the mercy of the managing agents both financially and when it comes to practical issues such as the cleanliness of the communal areas. Enquire of other tenants what they think of them. In conclusion, find out the dates that the service fees are due to the managing agents and specifically what you get for your money. Are any of leasehold owners in arrears of their service charge payments? You should be aware if it is less than 80 years it will have adverse implications on the salability of the flat. Check with your mortgage company that they are willing to lend given the lease term. Leases with fewer than 80 years remaining means that you will most likely have to extend the lease at some point and you need to have some idea of what this would cost. For most Badmintonlease extensions you would be be obliged to have been the owner of the residence for 24 months in order to be entitled to carry out a lease extension.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Badminton