Leasehold Conveyancing in Booker - Get a Quote from the leasehold experts approved by your lender

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When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Booker, you will need to chose a conveyancing solicitor with leasehold experience. Whether your lender is to be Santander, Yorkshire Building Society or Bradford & Bingley be sure to choose a lawyer on their panel. Find a Booker conveyancing lawyer with our search tool

Top Five Questions relating to Booker leasehold conveyancing

Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Booker. Before I set the wheels in motion I would like to find out the remaining lease term.

Assuming the lease is recorded at the land registry - and most are in Booker - then the leasehold title will always include the basic details 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.

I am intending to sublet my leasehold flat in Booker. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask her. Is permission from the freeholder required?

Some leases for properties in Booker 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.

Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only Sixty One years remaining on my lease in Booker. I need to get lease extension but my freeholder is absent. What options are available to me?

On the basis that you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be extended by the Court. You will be obliged to prove that you or your lawyers have made all reasonable attempts to locate the lessor. For most situations a specialist should be helpful to try and locate and to produce a report to be accepted by the court as evidence that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer both on proving the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court overseeing Booker.

I've recently bought a leasehold flat in Booker. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to completion of my purchase?

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. However, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. It is an essential part 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).

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Booker with the intention of speeding up the sale process?

  • A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Booker can be bypassed if you instruct lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and ask them to collate the leasehold documentation which will be required by the purchasers’ conveyancers.
  • The majority landlords or managing agents in Booker charge for supplying management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should discover the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack sought as soon as you have a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The average time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most usual reason for frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Booker.
  • If you have had any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are resolved before the property is put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be concerned about purchasing a property where there is an ongoing dispute. You may need to swallow your pride and pay any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. 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 details of the dispute to the buyers, but it is clearly preferable to present the dispute as over as opposed to unresolved.
  • If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should ensure that you have the original share document. Organising a new share certificate is often a time consuming process and frustrates many a Booker home move. If a new share certificate is needed, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (where applicable) for this at the earliest opportunity.
  • You may think that you are aware of the number of years left on your lease but it would be advisable verify this by asking your lawyers. A buyer’s lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to where the remaining number of years is under 75 years. It is therefore 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 premises on the market for sale.

    • Leasehold Conveyancing in Booker - Examples of Queries Prior to buying

      Does the lease contain onerous restrictions? Many Booker leasehold flats will incur a service charge for maintenance of the building levied on behalf of the landlord. If you acquire the flat you will have to meet this charge, normally periodically accross the year. This may differ from several hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for bigger purpose-built blocks. There will also be a ground rent for you to pay yearly, this is usually not a significant figure, say around £50-£100 but you need to enquire as on occasion it can be many hundreds of pounds. Best to be warned whether a new roof is being put on or some other significant cost is due in the near future to be shared by the leasehold owners and could well dramatically increase the the service costs or require a one off payment.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Booker