I've recently bought a leasehold flat in Bexhill. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to 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. 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).

What are your top tips when it comes to choosing a Bexhill conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a property lawyer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Bexhill conveyancing firm) it is imperative that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We advise that you speak with two or three firms including non Bexhill conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be useful:

• How experienced is the practice with lease extension legislation?
• Can they put you in touch with client in Bexhill who can give a testimonial?

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Bexhill from the point of view of saving time on the sale process?

• Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Bexhill can be bypassed if you instruct lawyers the minute you market your property and request that they start to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the purchasers’ lawyers.
• Many landlords or managing agents in Bexhill charge for providing management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should find out the actual amount of the charges. The management pack can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The typical amount of time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most frequent cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in Bexhill.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s approval? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Bexhill state that internal structural alterations or installing wooden flooring necessitate a licence issued by the Landlord consenting to such alterations. Where you dont have the consents to hand do not contact the landlord without contacting your conveyancer before hand.
• If you have the benefit of shareholding in the Management Company, you should ensure that you are holding the original share certificate. Organising a re-issued share certificate can be a lengthy process and slows down many a Bexhill conveyancing transaction. Where a reissued share is necessary, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (if relevant) for this at the earliest opportunity.
• You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but you should double-check by asking your solicitors. A buyer’s conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to where the remaining number of years is less than 75 years. In the circumstances it is essential at an early stage that you consider 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 our sale of a £ 450000 garden flat in Bexhill in just under a week. The freeholder has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and 3 years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge an administration fee for a flat conveyance in Bexhill?

For the majority of leasehold sales in Bexhill conveyancing will involve, queries regarding the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :

• Completing pre-contract questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Bexhill
• Supplying insurance information
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your conveyancer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Bexhill leasehold premises is £350. For Bexhill 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 required to supply the information.

In relation to leasehold conveyancing in Bexhill what are the most common lease defects?

Leasehold conveyancing in Bexhill is not unique. Most leases are individual and drafting errors can result in certain clauses are not included. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• A provision to repair to or maintain parts of the premises
• Insurance obligations
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

You will 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. Santander, Bank of Scotland, and TSB all have express conveyancing instructions 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 withdraw.

I purchased a leasehold flat in Bexhill, conveyancing was carried out in 2009. Can you let me have an estimate of the premium that my landlord can legally expect in return for granting a renewal of my lease? Corresponding flats in Bexhill with an extended lease are worth £225,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £65 yearly. The lease ceases on 21st October 2094

With 68 years left to run we estimate the premium for your lease extension to be between £12,400 and £14,200 as well as professional fees.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed due diligence. You should not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt other concerns that need to be taken into account and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward placing reliance on this information without first getting professional advice.