Guaranteed fixed fees for Leasehold Conveyancing in Billesdon

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Top Five Questions relating to Billesdon leasehold conveyancing

Expecting to complete next month on a studio apartment in Billesdon. Conveyancing lawyers have said that they are sending me a report next week. What should I be looking out for?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Billesdon should include some of the following:

  • Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, landlord
  • The physical extent of the premises. This will be the property itself but may include a loft or basement if appropriate.
  • Do you need to have carpet in the flat or are you allowed wood flooring?
  • An explanation as to the provision in the lease to pay service charges - with regard to both the building, and the more general rights a leaseholder has
  • Changes to the flat (alterations and additions)
  • The landlord’s rights to access the flat you be made aware that your landlord has rights of access and I know how much notice s/he must provide.
  • Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your premises and do you know what it means in practice? For a comprehensive list of information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Billesdon please ask your lawyer in advance of your conveyancing in Billesdon

    • Back In 2002, I bought a leasehold flat in Billesdon. Conveyancing and Virgin Money mortgage went though with no issue. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1997. The conveyancing solicitor in Billesdon who previously acted has long since retired.Any advice?

    The first thing you should do is make enquiries of the Land Registry to be sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. It is not necessary to instruct a Billesdon conveyancing solicitor to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for a few pound. Rest assured that regardless, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

    I am looking at a couple of maisonettes in Billesdon both have about fifty years left on the leases. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

    A lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the property for a prescribed time frame. As the lease gets shorter the saleability of the lease decreases and it becomes more expensive to acquire a lease extension. This is why it is generally wise to increase the term of the lease. It is often difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease because mortgage lenders may be unwilling to lend money on such properties. Lease extension can be a protracted process. We recommend you get professional assistance from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this area

    I've recently bought a leasehold house in Billesdon. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

    In a situation 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. Strange as it may seem, 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).

    Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Billesdon with the intention of speeding up the sale process?

    • A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Billesdon can be bypassed if you instruct lawyers the minute you market your property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers lawyers.
    • A minority of Billesdon 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 should make it clear that the buyer is financially capable of paying the annual 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 buyers or their solicitors.
  • If you have had conflict with your freeholder 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 warry about purchasing a flat where a dispute is ongoing. 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 are still duty bound to disclose details of the dispute to the buyers, but it is clearly preferable to present the dispute as historic as opposed to ongoing.
  • If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should make sure that you have the original share certificate. Obtaining a new share certificate can be a time consuming formality and slows down many a Billesdon conveyancing deal. If a duplicate share certificate is required, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (if relevant) for this as soon as possible.
  • You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but it would be advisable verify this via your conveyancers. A buyer’s lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to where the lease term is under 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 premises on the market for sale.

    • Leasehold Conveyancing in Billesdon - Examples of Queries Prior to Purchasing

      Is anyone aware of any major works anticipated that could increase the service fees? Many Billesdon leasehold apartments will incur a service charge for maintenance of the building set by the management company. Where you purchase the flat you will have to pay this contribution, usually periodically throughout the year. This may vary from a few hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for bigger purpose-built buildings. There will also be a ground rent to be met annual, this is usually not a large amount, say approximately £25-£75 but you need to enquire as occasionally it can be many hundreds of pounds. Who takes charge for maintaining and repairing the building?

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Billesdon