Recently asked questions relating to Brighouse leasehold conveyancing
There are only Fifty years remaining on my flat in Brighouse. I now wish to get lease extension but my freeholder is can not be found. What options are available to me?
On the basis that you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be lengthened by the Court. However, you will be required to prove that you have made all reasonable attempts to track down the lessor. On the whole an enquiry agent should be useful to conduct investigations and prepare a report which can be accepted by the court as evidence that the freeholder can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer in relation to proving the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing Brighouse.
I work for a reputable estate agency in Brighouse where we have experienced a number of flat sales derailed as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received contradictory information from local Brighouse conveyancing solicitors. Please can you clarify whether the seller of a flat can instigate the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?
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 sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or at the same time as 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.
Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Brighouse from the point of view of saving time on the sale process?
- A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Brighouse can be avoided where you get in touch lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and ask them to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers conveyancers.
- In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s permission? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Brighouse leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or laying down wooden flooring require a licence from the Landlord consenting to such works. If you dont have the consents in place you should not contact the landlord without contacting your lawyer first.
We expect to complete the sale of our £375000 garden flat in Brighouse in just under a week. The management company has quoted £360 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and previous years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Brighouse?
For most leasehold sales in Brighouse conveyancing will involve, queries regarding 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 Brighouse
- Copies of the building insurance and schedule
- Deeds of covenant upon sale
- Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale
What are the frequently found defects that you see in leases for Brighouse properties?
There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Brighouse. All leases are individual and drafting errors can sometimes mean that certain clauses are missing. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:
- Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the premises
- Insurance obligations
- A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
- Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall
A defective lease can cause problems when trying to sell a property primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Santander, Coventry Building Society, and Britannia all have express requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is problematic they may refuse to grant the mortgage, obliging the buyer to pull out.
Leasehold Conveyancing in Brighouse - Examples of Queries Prior to buying
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Who are the managing agents?
Please inform me if there are any major works in the planning that will likely add a premium to the maintenance costs?
You should be aware that where the lease has less than 80 years it will impact the marketability of the property. Check with your bank that they are content with remaining years on the lease. Leases with fewer than 80 years remaining means that you will probably need a lease extension sooner rather than later and it is worth discovering how much this would cost. Remember, in most cases you will be required to have owned the premises for 24 months before you are eligible to extend the lease.
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