Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Brentwood:

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When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Brentwood, you will need to appoint a conveyancing practitioner with leasehold experience. Whether your mortgage company is to be Santander, RBS or Nationwide be sure to choose a lawyer on their panel. Feel free to use our search tool

Top Five Questions relating to Brentwood leasehold conveyancing

I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that appears to meet my requirements, at a reasonable figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have subsequently been informed that it's a leasehold as opposed to freehold. I am assuming that there are issues buying a house with a leasehold title in Brentwood. Conveyancing solicitors have are soon to be appointed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Brentwood are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local conveyancer used to dealing with such properties who can assist with the conveyancing process. We note that you are buying in Brentwood so you should seriously consider looking for a Brentwood conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they are used to dealing with leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the number of years remaining. As a lessee you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions such as obtaining the landlord’sconsent to carry out alterations. It may be necessary to pay a maintenance charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the house is located on an estate. Your solicitor should appraise you on the various issues.

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a two maisonettes in Brentwood both have approximately forty five years left on the lease term. Do I need to be concerned?

A lease is a right to use the premises for a period of time. As a lease gets shorter the value of the lease reduces and results in it becoming more expensive to acquire a lease extension. This is why it is generally wise to extend the lease term. It is often difficult to sell a property with a short lease as mortgage lenders may be reluctant to lend money on such properties. Lease enfranchisement can be a protracted process. We recommend you seek professional assistance from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this field

I've recently bought a leasehold house in Brentwood. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

In a situation 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. 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 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).

What advice can you give us when it comes to finding a Brentwood conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a conveyancer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Brentwood conveyancing practice) it is essential that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We advise that you speak with two or three firms including non Brentwood conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions might be useful:

  • How familiar is the firm with lease extension legislation?
  • If they are not ALEP accredited then why not?

    • Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Brentwood with the intention of speeding up the sale process?

    • Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Brentwood can be reduced where you instruct lawyers as soon as you market your property and ask them to collate the leasehold documentation needed by the buyers solicitors.
    • The majority landlords or managing agents in Brentwood charge for providing management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the fee that they propose to charge. The management information 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 frequent cause of frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Brentwood.
  • If you have carried out any alterations to the residence would they have required Landlord’s consent? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Brentwood state that internal structural changes or installing wooden flooring necessitate a licence from the Landlord consenting to such alterations. Should you dont have the approvals in place do not communicate with the landlord without contacting your lawyer before hand.
  • A minority of Brentwood leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. Any bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are financially capable of paying the yearly service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their solicitors.
  • If there is a history of any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved before the property is marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where a dispute is ongoing. You will have to accept that you will have to discharge any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to completion of the sale. 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 purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as historic as opposed to ongoing.

    • I have given up seeking a lease extension in Brentwood. Can this matter be resolved via the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal?

    Absolutely. We are happy to 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 affected 1 flat. The the unexpired residue of the current lease was 57.5 years.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Brentwood