Guaranteed fixed fees for Leasehold Conveyancing in Baschurch

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

Examples of recent questions relating to leasehold conveyancing in Baschurch

My fiance and I may need to let out our Baschurch ground floor flat temporarily due to a new job. We instructed a Baschurch conveyancing practice in 2003 but they have since shut and we did not think at the time seek any advice as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?

A small minority of properties in Baschurch do contain a provision to say that subletting is only permitted with prior consent from the landlord. The landlord is not entitled to unreasonably refuse but, in such cases, they would need to review 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 permission.

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a two maisonettes in Baschurch which have in the region of forty five years remaining on the lease term. Will this present a problem?

A lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the premises for a period of time. As a lease shortens the value of the lease deteriorate and it becomes more expensive to extend the lease. For this reason it is advisable to extend the lease term. More often than not it is difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease as mortgage companies may be reluctant to lend money on such properties. Lease extension can be a difficult process. We advise that you seek professional assistance from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this area

I've recently bought a leasehold house in Baschurch. 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. However, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element 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).

I am employed by a busy estate agency in Baschurch where we have witnessed a few leasehold sales derailed due to short leases. I have been given contradictory information from local Baschurch conveyancing firms. Could you shed some light as to whether the owner of a flat can start the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that 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. The benefit of this is that the buyer need not have to wait 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 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.

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Baschurch with the aim of expediting the sale process?

  • A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Baschurch can be avoided where you instruct lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and request that they start to collate the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers representatives.
  • Many landlords or Management Companies in Baschurch charge for supplying management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the fee that they propose to charge. The management information sought on or before finding a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most usual reason for frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Baschurch.
  • Some Baschurch 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 put in hand 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 service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their lawyers.
  • If you have the benefit of shareholding in the freehold, you should make sure that you have the original share document. Obtaining a replacement share certificate is often a lengthy process and frustrates many a Baschurch conveyancing transaction. If a reissued share is required, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (if relevant) for this at the earliest opportunity.
  • You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be advisable verify this via your solicitors. A buyer’s lawyer will not be happy to advise their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the remaining number of years is below 75 years. It is therefore essential at an as soon as possible that you identify whether the lease requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

    • I inherited a basement flat in Baschurch, conveyancing was carried out in 2010. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Comparable flats in Baschurch with a long lease are worth £255,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £55 per annum. The lease expires on 21st October 2090

    With 65 years remaining on your lease we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £17,100 and £19,800 as well as costs.

    The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs without more comprehensive due diligence. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be other issues that need to be considered and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward placing reliance on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Baschurch