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

Basildon leasehold conveyancing Example Support Desk Enquiries

I am intending to sublet my leasehold flat in Basildon. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask her. Do I need to ask my freeholder for permission?

Notwithstanding that your last Basildon conveyancing solicitor is no longer around you can review your lease to check if it allows you to sublet the property. The rule is that if the deeds are non-specific, subletting is permitted. There may be a precondition that you must seek consent from your landlord or some other party before subletting. The net result is that you cannot sublet without prior consent. The consent must not not be unreasonably turned down. If the lease does not allow you to sublet you will need to ask your landlord for their consent.

I've recently bought a leasehold property in Basildon. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. Strange as it may seem, 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).

I work for a busy estate agent office in Basildon where we have experienced a number of leasehold sales put at risk due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received inconsistent advice from local Basildon conveyancing firms. Could you confirm whether the owner of a flat can initiate the lease extension process for the buyer?

As long as the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to kick-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 to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed before, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.

An alternative approach is to agree the lease extension with the freeholder 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.

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Basildon from the point of view of speeding up the sale process?

  • Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Basildon can be reduced if you instruct lawyers the minute your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold documentation needed by the purchasers’ solicitors.
  • Many landlords or Management Companies in Basildon charge for providing management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the actual amount of the charges. The management information can be applied for as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. The average time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most usual reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Basildon.
  • If you have carried out any alterations to the property would they have required Landlord’s approval? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Most leases in Basildon state that internal structural alterations or addition of wooden flooring necessitate a licence issued by the Landlord approving such works. Where you fail to have the approvals to hand you should not communicate with the landlord without checking with your lawyer before hand.
  • Some Basildon leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this is the case, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. Any 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.
  • If you have had any disputes with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are settled prior to the flat being put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where there is a current dispute. You may need to swallow your pride and discharge any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to 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 better to present the dispute as historic as opposed to unresolved.

    • Are there common defects that you come across in leases for Basildon properties?

    Leasehold conveyancing in Basildon is not unique. All leases are individual and legal mistakes in the legal wording can result in certain sections are not included. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

    • Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the building
    • A duty to insure the building
    • A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
    • Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

    You may 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. National Westminster Bank, Chelsea Building Society, and Clydesdale all have very detailed conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to grant the mortgage, obliging the buyer to pull out.

    Leasehold Conveyancing in Basildon - Examples of Queries before Purchasing

      How much is the yearly service fee and ground rent? Its a good idea to find out as much as you can regarding the managing agents as they will either make living at the property much simpler or a lot more difficult. As the owner of a leasehold property you are often at the mercy of the managing agents both financially and when it comes to practical matters like the upkeep of the communal areas. You should not be shy to ask other people whether they are happy with their service. In conclusion, find out the dates that you are obliged pay the maintenance charge to the appropriate party and precisely what you get for your money. Are any of leasehold owners in arrears of their service charge liability?

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Basildon