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Leasehold conveyancing in Bury is more complex than freehold. Your home move will be smoother where you choose a lawyer with a wealth of experience of leasehold conveyancing in Bury and throughout next step up in loc. The lawyers we recommend have been approved by your lender so use our search tool to check.

Examples of recent questions relating to leasehold conveyancing in Bury

I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that appears to tick a lot of boxes, at a reasonable figure which is making it more attractive. I have subsequently been informed that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are particular concerns purchasing a house with a leasehold title in Bury. Conveyancing advisers have are about to be appointed. Will my lawyers set out the risks of buying a leasehold house in Bury ?

The majority of houses in Bury are freehold and not leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local solicitor used to dealing with such properties who can assist with the conveyancing process. it is apparent that you are purchasing in Bury so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Bury conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they have experience in advising on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the unexpired lease term. As a leaseholder you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want to the property. The lease will likely included provisions for example requiring the landlord’spermission to carry out changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a service charge towards the maintenance of the communal areas where the property is part of an estate. Your conveyancer will report to you on the legal implications.

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a two maisonettes in Bury which have about fifty years unexpired on the lease term. should I be concerned?

There are no two ways about it. A leasehold flat in Bury is a wasting asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The closer the lease gets to its expiry date, the more it adversely affects the value of the property. For most buyers and mortgage companies, leases with under eighty years become less and less marketable. On a more positive note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the premises 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 property 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 Bury conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. A more straightforward and quicker method of extending would be to contact your landlord directly and sound him out on the prospect of extending the lease They may agree to a smaller lump sum and an increase in the ground rent, but to shorter extension terms in return. 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.

Last month I purchased a leasehold property in Bury. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to my ownership?

Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. Strange as it may seem, 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 ensure 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).

I am employed by a busy estate agent office in Bury where we have experienced a number of leasehold sales derailed due to short leases. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Bury conveyancing solicitors. Please can you shed some light as to whether the owner of a flat can start 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. This means that the buyer need not have to wait 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.

An alternative approach is to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord 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 advice for leasehold conveyancing in Bury from the point of view of saving time on the sale process?

  • A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Bury can be avoided where you instruct lawyers the minute your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to collate the leasehold documentation which will be required by the purchasers’ solicitors.
  • The majority freeholders or Management Companies in Bury charge 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 typical amount of time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most usual cause of frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Bury.
  • If you have carried out any alterations to the property would they have required Landlord’s approval? Have you, for example laid down wooden flooring? Most leases in Bury state that internal structural alterations or addition of wooden flooring necessitate a licence issued by the Landlord consenting to such works. Should you dont have the consents to hand you should not communicate with the landlord without contacting your lawyer first.
  • A minority of Bury leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, it would be prudent to place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are financially capable of paying 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 buyers or their solicitors.
  • If you hold a share in a the Management Company, you should ensure that you hold the original share document. Arranging a duplicate share certificate is often a time consuming formality and slows down many a Bury conveyancing transaction. Where a duplicate share is needed, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (where applicable) for this as soon as possible.

    • Leasehold Conveyancing in Bury - A selection of Questions you should ask before buying

      The best form of lease arrangement is a share of the freehold. In this situation the tenants have being in charge if their destiny and notwithstanding that a managing agent is often retained where the building is larger than a house conversion, the managing agent is directed by the tenants. Are there any major works anticipated that will likely add a premium to the maintenance charges? What is the yearly maintenance fee and ground rent?

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Bury