Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Biggleswade:

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When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Biggleswade, you will need to appoint a conveyancing practitioner with leasehold experience. Whether your mortgage company is to be Clydesdale , RBS or Bradford & Bingley be sure to choose a lawyer on their approved list. Feel free to use our search tool

Top Five Questions relating to Biggleswade leasehold conveyancing

Looking forward to complete next month on a garden flat in Biggleswade. Conveyancing solicitors assured me that they report fully on Monday. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Biggleswade 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 demise. This will be the apartment itself but might include a loft or cellar if appropriate.
  • Are pets allowed in the flat?
  • Ground rent - how much and when you need to pay, and also know whether this will change in the future
  • Repair and maintenance of the flat
  • Changes to the flat (alterations and additions) For a comprehensive list of information to be included in your report on your leasehold property in Biggleswade please ask your solicitor in advance of your conveyancing in Biggleswade

    • I today plan to offer on a house that seems to be perfect, at a great price which is making it all the more appealing. I have subsequently discovered that the title is leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are issues purchasing a house with a leasehold title in Biggleswade. Conveyancing advisers have are soon to be appointed. Will they explain the issues?

    Most houses in Biggleswade are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can assist with the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are purchasing in Biggleswade in which case you should be shopping around for a Biggleswade conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they are used to dealing with leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. Being a lessee you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease comes with conditions for example requiring the landlord’spermission to conduct alterations. You may also be required to pay a service charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the house is located on an estate. Your conveyancer will report to you on the legal implications.

    I work for a reputable estate agency in Biggleswade where we have experienced a few flat sales derailed as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given contradictory information from local Biggleswade 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 owned the lease 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 sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done prior to, 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 purchaser.

    What are your top tips when it comes to choosing a Biggleswade conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

    When appointing a property lawyer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Biggleswade conveyancing firm) it is imperative that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We recommend that you make enquires with two or three firms including non Biggleswade conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be useful:

    • How many lease extensions have they carried out in Biggleswade in the last twenty four months?
  • What are the legal fees for lease extension conveyancing?

    • Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Biggleswade from the perspective of speeding up the sale process?

    • A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Biggleswade can be avoided if you instruct lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to collate the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers solicitors.
    • In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s permission? Have you, for example laid down wooden flooring? Most leases in Biggleswade state that internal structural changes or laying down wooden flooring calls for a licence issued by the Landlord acquiescing to such works. If you fail to have the approvals to hand you should not contact the landlord without contacting your conveyancer before hand.
  • Some Biggleswade leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, it would be prudent to place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. The bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is 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 purchasers or their solicitors.
  • If there is a history of conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are settled prior to the flat being marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where a dispute is unsettled. You will have to accept that you will have to discharge any arrears of service charge or resolve 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 details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as historic as opposed to unsettled.
  • You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be advisable double-check via your lawyers. A purchaser's conveyancer will be unlikely to recommend their client to to exchange contracts if the remaining number of years is less than 75 years. In the circumstances it is essential at an as soon as possible that you consider whether the lease requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

    • Leasehold Conveyancing in Biggleswade - Sample of Queries before Purchasing

      It would be a good idea to enquire if there are any onerous prohibitions in the lease. For instance it is very common in Biggleswade leases that pets are not permitted in in a block in Biggleswade. If you love the flatin Biggleswade however your cat can’t move with you then you will be faced hard choice. This question is useful as a) areas could cause problems in the building as the common areas may start to deteriorate if maintenance are not paid for b) if the leasehold owners have a dispute with the managing agents you will want to have full disclosure Who takes responsibility for maintaining and repairing the block?

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Biggleswade