Experts for Leasehold Conveyancing in Bovey Tracey

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When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Bovey Tracey, you will need to instruct a conveyancing practitioner with leasehold experience. Whether your lender is to be Santander, Yorkshire Building Society or Bradford & Bingley make sure you choose a lawyer on their approved list. Feel free to use our search tool

Sample questions relating to Bovey Tracey leasehold conveyancing

I’m about to sell my basement flat in Bovey Tracey.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just had a yearly maintenance charge demand – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

The sensible thing to do is discharge the service charge 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 management companies 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. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

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

In a situation 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. Strange as it may seem, 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 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).

I am employed by a reputable estate agent office in Bovey Tracey where we have experienced a number of leasehold sales jeopardised due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given conflicting advice from local Bovey Tracey conveyancing solicitors. Please can you shed some light as to whether the owner of a flat can instigate the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

As long as the seller has been the owner 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. This means that the proposed purchaser can avoid having to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.

An alternative approach is 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 buyer.

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Bovey Tracey with the aim of expediting the sale process?

  • Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Bovey Tracey can be reduced where you instruct lawyers as soon as you market your property and ask them to collate the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers lawyers.
  • Many freeholders or Management Companies in Bovey Tracey levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should find out the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack sought as soon as you have a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The typical amount of time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most frequent reason for frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Bovey Tracey.
  • If you have carried out any alterations to the property would they have required Landlord’s permission? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Bovey Tracey leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or addition of wooden flooring necessitate a licence from the Landlord consenting to such changes. Where you fail to have the paperwork in place do not communicate with the landlord without contacting your lawyer before hand.
  • If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should make sure that you have the original share certificate. Organising a new share certificate is often a time consuming formality and slows down many a Bovey Tracey conveyancing transaction. Where a duplicate share certificate is necessary, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (if relevant) for this as soon as possible.
  • You may think that you are aware of the number of years left on your lease but you should verify this by asking your solicitors. 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 75 years. It is therefore essential at an as soon as possible that you consider whether the lease for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale.

    • What are the common problems that you encounter in leases for Bovey Tracey properties?

    Leasehold conveyancing in Bovey Tracey is not unique. Most leases are individual and drafting errors can sometimes mean that certain provisions are not included. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

    • Repairing obligations to or maintain elements of the property
    • A duty to insure the building
    • Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
    • Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

    A defective lease can cause issues when trying to sell a property primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Lloyds TSB Bank, Virgin Money, and Godiva Mortgages Ltd all have very detailed conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to provide security, obliging the purchaser to pull out.

    I acquired a basement flat in Bovey Tracey, conveyancing formalities finalised half a dozen years ago. Can you shed any light on how much the price could be for a 90 year extension to my lease? Equivalent flats in Bovey Tracey with an extended lease are worth £215,000. The ground rent is £45 yearly. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2080

    With just 55 years unexpired we estimate the price of your lease extension to range between £30,400 and £35,200 as well as professional fees.

    The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to supply the actual costs in the absence of detailed due diligence. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other concerns that need to be considered and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action placing reliance on this information before getting professional advice.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Bovey Tracey