I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Biggleswade. Before I set the wheels in motion I would like to find out the unexpired term of the lease.

If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and most are in Biggleswade - then the leasehold title will always include the short particulars of the lease, namely the date; the term; and the original parties. From a conveyancing perspective such details then enable any prospective buyer and lender to confirm that any lease they are looking at is the one relevant to that title.For any other purpose, such as confirming how long the term was granted for and calculating what is left, then the register should be sufficient on it's own.

Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my garden apartment in Biggleswade.Conveyancing has not commenced but I have just had a yearly maintenance charge invoice – what should I do?

It best that you discharge 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 until 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.

What advice can you give us when it comes to choosing a Biggleswade conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a solicitor for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Biggleswade conveyancing practice) it is imperative that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We recommend that you speak with several firms including non Biggleswade conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions might be of use:

• What volume of lease extensions has the firm conducted in Biggleswade in the last twenty four months?

What are the costs for lease extension conveyancing?

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Biggleswade from the perspective of saving time on the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Biggleswade can be avoided if you instruct lawyers the minute you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the purchasers’ conveyancers.
• The majority landlords or managing agents in Biggleswade levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should discover the fee that they propose to charge. The management information can be applied for as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. 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 Biggleswade.

A minority of Biggleswade leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, 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 buyers or their lawyers.

If there is a history of any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved prior to the flat being marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where there is an ongoing dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to 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 ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal particulars of the dispute to the buyers, but it is better to reveal the dispute as historic as opposed to unsettled.

If you hold a share in a the Management Company, you should make sure that you hold the original share certificate. Organising a new share certificate can be a lengthy formality and slows down many a Biggleswade home move. Where a reissued share is required, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (if relevant) for this as soon as possible.

We expect to complete the sale of our £125000 maisonette in Biggleswade on Tuesday in a week. The landlords agents has quoted £300 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and previous years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Biggleswade?

Biggleswade conveyancing on leasehold flats ordinarily necessitates administration charges levied by landlords agents :

• Completing pre-exchange enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in Biggleswade
• 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 Biggleswade leasehold property is £350. For Biggleswade 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 provide answers.

I acquired a 1st floor flat in Biggleswade, conveyancing having been completed half a dozen years ago. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Similar flats in Biggleswade with a long lease are worth £173,000. The ground rent is £65 invoiced every year. The lease ceases on 21st October 2096

With 75 years remaining on your lease we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £11,400 and £13,200 plus costs.

The suggested premium range 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 comprehensive due diligence. Do not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt additional issues that need to be taken into account and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward based on this information without first getting professional advice.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Biggleswade