I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Bournemouth. Before I set the wheels in motion I want to be sure as to the remaining lease term.

Assuming the lease is registered - and most are in Bournemouth - 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.

There are only 72 years remaining on my lease in Bournemouth. I need to extend my lease but my freeholder is absent. What are my options?

If you meet the appropriate requirements, 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 enable the lease to be granted an extra 90 years by the Court. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you have done all that could be expected to locate the landlord. In some cases a specialist should be useful to try and locate and to produce a report to be accepted by the court as evidence that the landlord can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a solicitor both on devolving into the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court covering Bournemouth.

I’m about to sell my 2 bed flat in Bournemouth.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just received a yearly maintenance charge demand – Do I pay up?

It best that you clear the invoice as normal because all ground rent and service charges will be apportioned on completion, so you will be reimbursed by the buyer for the period running from after the completion date to the next payment date. Most managing agents will not acknowledge the buyer unless the service charges have been paid and are up to date so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

I work for a reputable estate agent office in Bournemouth where we have experienced a number of flat sales derailed due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Bournemouth conveyancing firms. Can you clarify whether the vendor of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

Provided that the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser need not have to wait 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or simultaneously with completion of the sale.

Alternatively, it may be possible to agree the lease extension with the freeholder either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the purchaser.

What are your top tips when it comes to choosing a Bournemouth conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

When appointing a solicitor for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Bournemouth conveyancing firm) it is most important that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We recommend that you make enquires with two or three firms including non Bournemouth conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions might be helpful:

• How many lease extensions has the firm conducted in Bournemouth in the last twenty four months?

Leasehold Conveyancing in Bournemouth - A selection of Queries before buying

You should be aware if it is less than 80 years it will have adverse implications on the value of the property. Check with your bank that they are willing to to proceed given the lease term. A short lease means that you will most likely require a lease extension sooner rather than later and it is worth discovering how much this will be. Remember, in most cases you would need to own the residence for a couple of years in order to be eligible to extend the lease. Does the lease have in excess of 82 years left? This information is useful as a) areas could cause problems in the block as the common areas may begin to deteriorate if repairs remain unpaid b) if the tenants have a dispute with the running of the building you will want to have complete disclosure

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Bournemouth