Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Bollington:

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Any conveyancing practice can theoretically deal with your leasehold conveyancing in Bollington, your mortgage provider may not be willing to work with them if the firm are not on their list of approved solicitors for conveyancing

Bollington leasehold conveyancing: Q and A’s

I wish to rent out my leasehold flat in Bollington. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask him. Is permission from the freeholder required?

Some leases for properties in Bollington do contain a provision to say that subletting is only permitted with prior consent from the landlord. The landlord cannot unreasonably withhold but, in such cases, they would need to review references. Experience dictates that problems are usually caused by unsatisfactory tenants rather than owner-occupiers and for that reason you can expect the freeholder to take up the references and consider them carefully before granting permission.

I've found a house that appears to tick a lot of boxes, at a great figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have just discovered that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are issues buying a house with a leasehold title in Bollington. Conveyancing advisers have are about to be appointed. Will my lawyers set out the risks of buying a leasehold house in Bollington ?

The majority of houses in Bollington are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can help the conveyancing process. it is apparent that you are buying in Bollington so you should seriously consider looking for a Bollington conveyancing solicitor and check that they are used to advising on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the unexpired lease term. As a lessee you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want to the property. The lease will likely included provisions such as requiring the freeholder’sconsent to conduct changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a service charge towards the upkeep of the estate where the property is part of an estate. Your solicitor should report to you on the legal implications.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold house in Bollington. Conveyancing and Alliance & Leicester mortgage organised. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1998. The conveyancing practitioner in Bollington who acted for me is not around.Any advice?

First make enquiries of the Land Registry to be sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is indeed the new freeholder. There is no need to incur the fees of a Bollington conveyancing practitioner to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for a few pound. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

What advice can you give us when it comes to finding a Bollington conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a conveyancer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Bollington conveyancing firm) it is essential that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We recommend that you speak with two or three firms including non Bollington conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions could be useful:

  • How experienced is the firm with lease extension legislation?
  • What are the costs for lease extension conveyancing?

    • Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Bollington from the perspective of speeding up the sale process?

    • Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Bollington can be bypassed where you appoint lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to collate the leasehold information needed by the buyers solicitors.
    • In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s consent? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Bollington leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or laying down wooden flooring require a licence from the Landlord consenting to such works. Where you dont have the consents in place you should not communicate with the landlord without contacting your lawyer in advance.
  • Some Bollington leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this is the case, it would be prudent to notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is 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 buyers or their solicitors.
  • If there is a history of any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved before the property is marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where a dispute is ongoing. 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 prior to 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 present the dispute as historic as opposed to ongoing.
  • You may think that you are aware of the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be wise to verify this by asking your conveyancers. A buyer’s conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the remaining number of years is under 80 years. In the circumstances it is essential at an early stage 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.

    • Bollington Leasehold Conveyancing - Sample of Queries before Purchasing

      Most Bollington leasehold apartments will have a service charge for the upkeep of the building levied by the freeholder. Should you buy the apartment you will have to pay this liability, usually periodically accross the year. This could vary from a couple of hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for bigger purpose-built buildings. In all probability there will be a ground rent for you to pay yearly, this is usually not a exorbitant amount, say around £50-£100 but you need to check it because sometimes it could be prohibitively expensive. Make sure you discover if the the lease includes any onerous restrictions in the lease. For example it is reasonably common in Bollington leases that pets are not allowed in certain buildings in Bollington. If you like the propertyin Bollington however your dog can’t move with you then you will be presented with a difficult choice. You will want to discover as much as you can regarding the managing agents as they can either make your life much easier or uncomfortable. As the owner of a leasehold property you are often at the mercy of the managing agents both financially and when it comes to daily matters like the upkeep of the communal areas. Enquire of other people whether they are happy with their management. On a final note, investigate as to the dates that you are obliged pay the service charge to the appropriate party and specifically how they are spending the funds.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Bollington