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

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When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Buckingham, you will need to appoint a conveyancing lawyer with leasehold experience. Whether your lender is to be Lloyds, Yorkshire Building Society or NatWest make sure you find a lawyer on their approved list. Feel free to use our search tool

Recently asked questions relating to Buckingham leasehold conveyancing

Expecting to exchange soon on a basement flat in Buckingham. Conveyancing solicitors assured me that they report fully on Monday. What should I be looking out for?

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

  • The length of the lease term You should be advised as what happens when the lease expires, and informed of the importance of the 80 year mark
  • Do you need to have carpet in the flat or are you allowed wood flooring?
  • Does the lease prevent you from letting out the flat, or working from home
  • Repair and maintenance of the flat
  • I don't know whether the lease allows me to alter or improve anything in the flat - you should know whether it applies to all alterations or just structural alteration, and whether consent is required
  • Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your property and do you know what it means in practice?
  • The landlord’s obligations to repair and maintain the building. It is important that you know who is responsible for the repair and maintenance of every part of the building For details of the information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Buckingham please ask your conveyancer in ahead of your conveyancing in Buckingham

    • Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my garden apartment in Buckingham.Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon but I have just had a yearly maintenance charge invoice – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

    Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should 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 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. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

    Back In 2001, I bought a leasehold flat in Buckingham. Conveyancing and Barclays mortgage went though with no issue. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1992. The conveyancing practitioner in Buckingham who acted for me is not around.Do I pay?

    The first thing you should do is contact the Land Registry to make sure that this person is indeed the new freeholder. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Buckingham conveyancing practitioner to do this as it can be done on-line for £3. You should note that regardless, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

    I work for a long established estate agent office in Buckingham where we have experienced a number of leasehold sales put at risk as a result of short leases. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Buckingham conveyancing solicitors. Can you confirm whether the owner of a flat can commence the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

    As long as 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 buyer can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed 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 buyer.

    Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Buckingham from the perspective of expediting the sale process?

    • A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Buckingham can be reduced where you get in touch lawyers as soon as you market your property and ask them to collate the leasehold information needed by the purchasers’ conveyancers.
    • The majority landlords or managing agents in Buckingham levy fees for providing management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should discover the fee that they propose to charge. The management information sought as soon as you have a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The average time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most common cause of frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Buckingham.
  • Some Buckingham leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, it would be prudent to place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is able to meet the annual 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 lawyers.
  • If you have had conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are settled before the property is put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where a dispute is unresolved. You may have to bite the bullet and discharge any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. 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 particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to reveal the dispute as historic as opposed to unresolved.
  • If you hold a share in a the Management Company, you should ensure that you have the original share document. Arranging a new share certificate can be a lengthy formality and slows down many a Buckingham conveyancing transaction. Where a duplicate share certificate is necessary, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (if applicable) for this at the earliest opportunity.

    • I own a ground floor flat in Buckingham, conveyancing formalities finalised half a dozen years ago. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Comparable flats in Buckingham with an extended lease are worth £237,000. The ground rent is £55 per annum. The lease ends on 21st October 2091

    With 66 years left to run the likely cost is going to span between £13,300 and £15,400 as well as legals.

    The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs without more detailed investigations. You should not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt other concerns that need to be taken into account and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action placing reliance on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Buckingham