Looking forward to exchange soon on a ground floor flat in Boscombe. Conveyancing solicitors assured me that they are sending me a report within the next couple of days. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Boscombe should include some of the following:

• The unexpired lease term You should be advised as what happens when the lease expires, and aware of the importance of not letting the lease term falling below eighty years

Setting out your legal entitlements in respect of the communal areas in the building.For example, does the lease include a right of way over a path or staircase?

Changes to the flat (alterations and additions)

Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your premises and do you know what it means in practice?

The landlord’s obligations to repair and maintain the building. It is important that you know who is responsible for the repair and maintenance of every part of the building

What you can do if a neighbour is in violation of a provision in their lease?

What the implications are if you breach a clause of your lease? For a comprehensive list of information to be included in your report on your leasehold property in Boscombe please ask your solicitor in ahead of your conveyancing in Boscombe

I've found a house that appears to tick a lot of boxes, at a great price which is making it more attractive. I have subsequently been informed that it's a leasehold as opposed to freehold. I would have thought that there are particular concerns purchasing a house with a leasehold title in Boscombe. Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been appointed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Boscombe are freehold rather than leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can assist with the conveyancing process. it is apparent that you are purchasing in Boscombe in which case you should be shopping around for a Boscombe conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they have experience in advising on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. As a leaseholder you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease comes with conditions for example requiring the freeholder’spermission to conduct changes to the property. You may also be required to pay a contribution towards the maintenance of the communal areas where the property is located on an estate. Your conveyancer will appraise you on the various issues.

Back In 2003, I bought a leasehold flat in Boscombe. Conveyancing and Godiva Mortgages Ltd mortgage organised. 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 1998. The conveyancing solicitor in Boscombe who acted for me is not around.Any advice?

The first thing you should do is contact the Land Registry to make sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Boscombe conveyancing firm to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. You should note that regardless, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I've recently bought a leasehold house in Boscombe. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before my ownership?

Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee 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 be sure 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).

All being well we will complete our sale of a £425000 garden flat in Boscombe next week. The management company has quoted £312 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and previous years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in Boscombe?

For most leasehold sales in Boscombe conveyancing will involve, questions about the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :

• Addressing pre-contract questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Boscombe
• Supplying insurance information
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your solicitor will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Boscombe leasehold property is £350. For Boscombe 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 required to provide answers.

Boscombe Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - A selection of Queries before buying

Is there a share of the freehold? Best to be warned whether changing the roof or some other significant cost is due in the foreseeable future to be shared between the leaseholders and will materially impact the level of the maintenance fees or necessitate a one off payment. The majority of Boscombe leasehold properties will be liable to pay a service bill for the upkeep of the block invoiced by the freeholder. Where you buy the flat you will have to meet this charge, usually quarterly during the year. This could be anything from a couple of hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for bigger purpose-built blocks. In all probability there will be a rentcharge for you to pay yearly, this is usually not a large figure, say approximately £25-£75 but you should to enquire as on occasion it can be prohibitively expensive.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Boscombe