Leasehold Conveyancing in Bartley Green - Get a Quote from the leasehold experts approved by your lender

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Any conveyancing practice can theoretically handle your leasehold conveyancing in Bartley Green, your mortgage provider may not be willing to work with them if the firm are not on their list of approved solicitors for conveyancing

Bartley Green leasehold conveyancing: Q and A’s

I am intending to let out my leasehold apartment in Bartley Green. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask her. Do I need to ask my freeholder for permission?

Some leases for properties in Bartley Green do contain a provision to say that subletting is only allowed with permission. The landlord is not entitled to unreasonably refuse but, in such cases, they would need to see references. Experience dictates that problems are usually caused by unsatisfactory tenants rather than owner-occupiers and for that reason you can expect the freeholder to take up the references and consider them carefully before granting consent.

I am hoping to complete next month on a ground floor flat in Bartley Green. Conveyancing solicitors inform me that they will have a report out to me next week. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

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

  • You should receive a copy of the lease
  • Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, freeholder
  • The physical extent of the property. This will be the property itself but could also include a roof space or cellar if appropriate.
  • Do you need to have carpet in the flat or are you allowed wood flooring?
  • Repair and maintenance of the flat
  • 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
  • What options are open to you if a neighbour breach a clause of their lease? For details of the information to be included in your report on your leasehold property in Bartley Green please enquire of your conveyancer in advance of your conveyancing in Bartley Green

    • I am looking at a couple of maisonettes in Bartley Green both have about fifty years left on the leases. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

    There are plenty of short leases in Bartley Green. The lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the property for a period of time. As a lease gets shorter the marketability of the lease reduces and it becomes more expensive to extend the lease. For this reason it is advisable to extend the lease term. It is often difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease because mortgage companies less inclined to grant a loan on such properties. Lease extension can be a protracted process. We advise that you get professional assistance from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this area

    Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Bartley Green with the purpose of saving time on the sale process?

    • A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Bartley Green can be bypassed if you instruct lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers conveyancers.
    • In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s consent? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Bartley Green leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or addition of wooden flooring require a licence from the Landlord acquiescing to such alterations. Should you dont have the approvals in place do not contact the landlord without contacting your conveyancer in advance.
  • Some Bartley Green leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. Any 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 buyers or their solicitors.
  • If you have had conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved prior to the flat being marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property 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 completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of 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 reveal the dispute as over as opposed to ongoing.
  • If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should ensure that you are holding the original share document. Obtaining a re-issued share certificate can be a lengthy process and delays many a Bartley Green conveyancing transaction. Where a duplicate share is necessary, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (where relevant) for this at the earliest opportunity.

    • What makes a Bartley Green lease problematic?

    There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Bartley Green. All leases is drafted differently and legal mistakes in the legal wording can result in certain clauses are missing. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

    • A provision to repair to or maintain elements of the building
    • Insurance obligations
    • 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

    You could encounter a problem when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. HSBC Bank, Skipton Building Society, and Platform Home Loans Ltd all have very detailed requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is defective they may refuse to grant the mortgage, forcing the purchaser to pull out.

    Leasehold Conveyancing in Bartley Green - Examples of Queries before Purchasing

      It is important to be aware whether changing the roof or some other major work is due shortly that will be shared amongst the leaseholders and will materially impact the level of the maintenance charges or necessitate a specific invoice. It would be prudent to investigate if there are any onerous restrictions in the lease. For instance it is very common in Bartley Green leases that pets are not allowed in certain buildings in Bartley Green. If you love the apartmentin Bartley Green but your cat can’t move with you then you have a very difficult compromise. Who are the managing agents?

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Bartley Green