I have just appointed agents to market my 2 bed apartment in Barton under Needwood.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just received a quarterly maintenance charge demand – what should I do?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should pay the invoice 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. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

I work for a long established estate agency in Barton under Needwood where we have witnessed a few flat sales put at risk due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received inconsistent advice from local Barton under Needwood conveyancing solicitors. Could you confirm whether the seller of a flat can start the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

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 can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed before, or at the same time as 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 buyer.

What advice can you give us when it comes to choosing a Barton under Needwood conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a conveyancer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Barton under Needwood conveyancing practice) it is most important that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We advise that you speak with several firms including non Barton under Needwood conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions could be helpful:

• How experienced is the firm with lease extension legislation?

If they are not ALEP accredited then why not?

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Barton under Needwood with the aim of expediting the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Barton under Needwood can be avoided where you appoint lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and ask them to collate the leasehold documentation needed by the buyers lawyers.
• If you have carried out any alterations to the premises would they have required Landlord’s approval? Have you, for example laid down wooden flooring? Barton under Needwood leases often stipulate that internal structural changes or laying down wooden flooring calls for a licence issued by the Landlord approving such works. If you fail to have the approvals in place you should not communicate with the landlord without checking with your conveyancer in advance.

If you have had conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is essential that these are resolved before the property is marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be warry about purchasing a property where a dispute is ongoing. You may have to bite the bullet and discharge any arrears of service charge or resolve 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 particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to present the dispute as over rather than ongoing.

If you hold a share in a the freehold, you should make sure that you have the original share certificate. Obtaining a new share certificate can be a lengthy process and delays many a Barton under Needwood conveyancing deal. If a new share is required, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (where relevant) for this as soon as possible.

You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but you should verify this by asking your lawyers. A purchaser's lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to to exchange contracts if the remaining number of years is below 75 years. It is therefore important at an early stage that you identify 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.

Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on the sale of our £200000 garden flat in Barton under Needwood in just under a week. The management company has quoted £324 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and previous years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Barton under Needwood?

For the majority of leasehold sales in Barton under Needwood conveyancing will involve, questions about the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :

• Answering pre-exchange questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Barton under Needwood
• Supplying insurance information
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your solicitor will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Barton under Needwood leasehold property is £350. For Barton under Needwood conveyancing transactions it is customary for the seller to pay for these costs. The landlord or their agents are under no legal obligation to answer such questions most will be willing to do so - albeit often at exorbitant prices where the fees bear little relation to the work involved. Unfortunately there is no law that requires fixed charges for administrative tasks. Neither is there any legal time frame by which they are obliged to supply answers.

Barton under Needwood Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Queries Prior to Purchasing

How many of the leaseholders are in arrears for their service charge payments? Many Barton under Needwood leasehold apartments will have a service charge for the upkeep of the block levied by the management company. If you buy the flat you will have to pay this amount, usually periodically accross the year. This can be anything from a couple of hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for blocks with lifts and large common areas. In all likelihood there will be a rentcharge to be met annual, this is usually not a large figure, say approximately £25-£75 but you need to enquire as occasionally it could be prohibitively expensive. Please note if it is no more than eighty years it will affect the marketability of the flat. It is worth checking with your mortgage company that they are willing to go ahead with the loan given the lease term. Leases with less than 80 years remaining means that you will almost definitely have to extend the lease sooner rather than later and it is worth finding out what this will be. Remember, in most cases you would be required to have owned the property for two years in order to be entitled to carry out a lease extension.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Barton under Needwood