I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Bishopsworth. Before I get started I would like to find out the unexpired term of the lease.

If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and 99.9% are in Bishopsworth - 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.

Helen (my wife) and I may need to sub-let our Bishopsworth ground floor flat for a while due to a new job. We used a Bishopsworth conveyancing firm in 2003 but they have since shut and we did not think at the time get any guidance as to whether the lease permits subletting. How do we find out?

Your lease dictates the relationship between the landlord and you the flat owner; specifically, it will set out if subletting is prohibited, or permitted but only subject to certain caveats. The rule is that if the lease contains no specific ban or restriction, subletting is permitted. The majority of leases in Bishopsworth do not contain an absolute prevention of subletting – such a clause would undoubtedly devalue the flat. Instead, there is usually a basic requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly supplying a copy of the tenancy agreement.

I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that seems to tick a lot of boxes, at a reasonable price which is making it more attractive. I have just been informed that it's a leasehold as opposed to freehold. I am assuming that there are issues purchasing a leasehold house in Bishopsworth. Conveyancing advisers have are soon to be appointed. Will my lawyers set out the risks of buying a leasehold house in Bishopsworth ?

Most houses in Bishopsworth are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area can assist with the conveyancing process. We note that you are buying in Bishopsworth in which case you should be shopping around for a Bishopsworth conveyancing solicitor and check that they have experience in advising on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the unexpired lease term. Being a leaseholder you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions for example requiring the landlord’sconsent to conduct changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a contribution towards the upkeep of the communal areas where the house is located on an estate. Your conveyancer should advise you fully on all the issues.

I am attracted to a couple of flats in Bishopsworth which have approximately fifty years remaining on the leases. Will this present a problem?

There is no doubt about it. A leasehold flat in Bishopsworth is a deteriorating asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The closer the lease gets to its expiry date, the more it adversely affects the salability of the property. The majority of purchasers and banks, leases with under eighty years become less and less attractive. On a more positive note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the premises for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of property with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Bishopsworth conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. A more straightforward and quicker method of extending would be to contact your landlord directly and sound him out on the prospect of extending the lease You may find he or she is happy to negotiate informally and willing to consider your offer straight off, without having to involve anyone else. This will save you time and money and it could help you reach a lower price on the lease. You need to ensure that the agreed terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.

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

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Bishopsworth can be bypassed if you get in touch lawyers the minute your agents start marketing the property and ask them to put together the leasehold information needed by the purchasers’ solicitors.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s consent? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Bishopsworth state that internal structural changes or installing wooden flooring calls for a licence from the Landlord consenting to such works. Where you dont have the consents in place you should not contact the landlord without checking with your conveyancer first.
• Some Bishopsworth leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers put in hand financial (bank) and professional references. Any bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are able to meet 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 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 resolved prior to the flat being put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where there is an ongoing 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 ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to present the dispute as historic rather than unsettled.
• You may think that you are aware of the number of years left on your lease but you should double-check by asking your conveyancers. A buyer’s lawyer will not be happy to advise their client to to exchange contracts if the remaining number of years is below 75 years. In the circumstances it is important at an early stage that you identify whether the lease requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale.

Bishopsworth Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Sample of Questions you should consider Prior to buying

The answer will be helpful as a) areas can result in problems for the block as the communal areas may begin to deteriorate where services are not paid for b) if the leasehold owners have a dispute with the running of the building you will want to have all the details Where a Bishopsworth lease has fewer than eighty years it will have adverse implications on the salability of the property. It is worth checking with your mortgage company that they are content with the length of the lease. A short lease means that you will probably require a lease extension at some point and you need to have some idea of what this would cost. For most Bishopsworthlease extensions you would be required to have owned the residence for 24 months before you are eligible to extend the lease.