Experts for Leasehold Conveyancing in Burnham

Get a Quote

Whether you are buying or selling leasehold flat in Burnham, our panel of leasehold conveyancing experts will help you move with as little stress as possible. Find a Burnham conveyancing lawyer with our search tool

Examples of recent questions relating to leasehold conveyancing in Burnham

There are only 62 years left on my lease in Burnham. I need to extend my lease but my freeholder is absent. What options are available to me?

If you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be granted an extra 90 years by the Court. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have used your best endeavours to locate the lessor. In some cases an enquiry agent may be helpful to conduct investigations and prepare a report to be used as evidence that the freeholder can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a property lawyer both on investigating the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Burnham.

I work for a long established estate agent office in Burnham where we have experienced a few leasehold sales derailed due to short leases. I have been given contradictory information from local Burnham conveyancing firms. Can you shed some light as to whether the vendor of a flat can initiate the lease extension process for the buyer?

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 proposed purchaser need not have to wait 2 years for a lease extension. 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.

Can you offer any advice when it comes to choosing a Burnham conveyancing firm to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

When appointing a conveyancer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Burnham conveyancing firm) it is essential that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We suggested that you talk with two or three firms including non Burnham 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:

  • Can they put you in touch with client in Burnham who can give a testimonial?
  • What are the charges for lease extension conveyancing?

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

    • Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Burnham can be bypassed where you instruct lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to collate the leasehold documentation needed by the purchasers’ conveyancers.
    • Many landlords or Management Companies in Burnham levy fees for providing management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack sought as soon as you have a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most common cause of frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Burnham.
  • In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s permission? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Burnham leases often stipulate that internal structural changes or laying down wooden flooring calls for a licence from the Landlord acquiescing to such works. Where you dont have the consents to hand you should not communicate with the landlord without contacting your conveyancer first.
  • Some Burnham leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this is the case, it would be prudent to place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. The 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 actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their lawyers.
  • You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be advisable double-check by asking your conveyancers. A purchaser's conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to where the lease term is below 80 years. It is therefore important at an as soon as possible that you consider whether the lease term for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

    • What makes a Burnham lease unacceptable for security purposes?

    Leasehold conveyancing in Burnham is not unique. All leases is drafted differently and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain clauses 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. National Westminster Bank, Chelsea Building Society, and Alliance & Leicester all have very detailed conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to provide security, obliging the purchaser to pull out.

    I am the registered owner of a basement flat in Burnham, conveyancing was carried out 8 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 Burnham with a long lease are worth £235,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £55 charged once a year. The lease runs out on 21st October 2086

    With only 64 years unexpired the likely cost is going to span between £15,200 and £17,600 plus costs.

    The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to provide the actual costs without more comprehensive due diligence. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other concerns that need to be taken into account and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward placing reliance on this information without first getting professional advice.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Burnham