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

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

Common questions relating to Brentwood leasehold conveyancing

Planning to sign contracts shortly on a garden flat in Brentwood. Conveyancing lawyers have said that they will have a report out to me on Monday. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

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

  • The length of the lease term You should be advised as what happens when the lease expires, and aware of the importance of the 80 year mark
  • Will you be prohibited or prevented from having pets in the property?
  • Whether your lease has a provision for a reserve fund?
  • You should have a good understanding of the insurance provisions
  • Repair and maintenance of the flat
  • Changes to the flat (alterations and additions)
  • What you can do if a neighbour breach a clause of their lease? For a comprehensive list of information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Brentwood please enquire of your lawyer in advance of your conveyancing in Brentwood

    • Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my basement flat in Brentwood.Conveyancing has not commenced but I have just had a quarterly service charge demand – what should I do?

    Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should 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 until 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 am attracted to a two flats in Brentwood both have in the region of forty five years unexpired on the leases. Will this present a problem?

    There is no doubt about it. A leasehold apartment in Brentwood is a wasting asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The closer the lease gets to its expiry date, the more it reduces the value of the premises. For most buyers and mortgage companies, leases with under eighty years become less and less marketable. On a more upbeat note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the property for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of premises with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Brentwood conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. More often than not it is possible to negotiate informally with the freeholder to extend the lease You may find he or she is happy to negotiate informally and willing to consider your offer straight off, without having to involve anyone else. This will save you time and money and it could help you reach a lower price on the lease. You need to ensure that any new terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.

    Can you offer any advice when it comes to finding a Brentwood conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

    If you are instructing a property lawyer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Brentwood conveyancing practice) it is most important that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We recommend that you speak with several firms including non Brentwood conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be of use:

    • How many lease extensions have they completed in Brentwood in the last 12 months?
  • Can they put you in touch with client in Brentwood who can give a testimonial?

    • Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Brentwood from the point of view of speeding up the sale process?

    • A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Brentwood can be bypassed where you get in touch lawyers as soon as you market your property and request that they start to collate the leasehold documentation needed by the buyers solicitors.
    • Many freeholders or managing agents in Brentwood charge for providing management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should find out the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack can be applied for as soon as you have a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The typical amount of time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most usual reason for frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Brentwood.
  • If there is a history of conflict with your landlord 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 will have to accept that you will have to pay any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose details of the dispute to the buyers, but it is clearly preferable to present the dispute as historic as opposed to unsettled.
  • If you have the benefit of shareholding in the freehold, you should ensure that you are holding the original share document. Organising a re-issued share certificate is often a lengthy process and delays many a Brentwood home move. Where a new share certificate is necessary, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (where relevant) for this as soon as possible.
  • You may think that you are aware of the number of years remaining on your lease but you should verify this via your lawyers. A purchaser's lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to where the remaining number of years is less than 80 years. In the circumstances it is essential at an as soon as possible that you identify whether the lease requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

    • Following months of correspondence we simply can't agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Brentwood. Does the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal have jurisdiction to calculate the appropriate figures?

    You certainly can. We can put you in touch with a Brentwood conveyancing firm who can help.

    An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a Brentwood property is 37 Lodge Court High Street in November 2013. the decision of the LVT was that the premium to be paid for the new lease was £25,559 This case related to 1 flat. The the number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 57.5 years.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Brentwood