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

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Sample questions relating to Byfleet leasehold conveyancing

My husband and I may need to sub-let our Byfleet garden flat for a while due to a new job. We instructed a Byfleet conveyancing firm in 2003 but they have since shut and we did not think at the time seek any advice as to whether the lease permits subletting. How do we find out?

Notwithstanding that your last Byfleet conveyancing lawyer is no longer around you can check your lease to see if you are permitted to let out the premises. The rule is that if the deeds are non-specific, subletting is allowed. There may be a precondition that you are obliged to obtain consent from your landlord or some other party in advance of subletting. The net result is you not allowed to sublet in the absence of first obtaining permission. Such consent is not allowed to be unreasonably turned down. If your lease does not allow you to sublet you will need to ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

I only have 62 years remaining on my flat in Byfleet. I need to get lease extension but my landlord is absent. What should I do?

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 or your lawyers have used your best endeavours to track down the landlord. On the whole a specialist may be useful to carry out a search and prepare a report which can be used as proof that the landlord is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a property lawyer in relation to proving the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court covering Byfleet.

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Byfleet with the aim of speeding up the sale process?

  • A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Byfleet can be reduced if you appoint lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold documentation needed by the purchasers’ representatives.
  • Many freeholders or managing agents in Byfleet charge for providing management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should find out the fee that they propose to charge. The management information can be applied for as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. The typical amount of time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most usual reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Byfleet.
  • A minority of Byfleet leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is 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 actual amount of the service charge 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 settled before the property is put on the market. The buyers and their solicitors will be concerned about purchasing a property where there is a current dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to pay 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 ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal particulars of the dispute to the buyers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as over rather than unresolved.
  • You may think that you are aware of the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be advisable double-check by asking your solicitors. A purchaser's conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to to exchange contracts if the lease term is less than 75 years. It is therefore important at an as soon as possible that you identify 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.

    • Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on our sale of a £325000 maisonette in Byfleet next week. The freeholder has quoted £348 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and 3 years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in Byfleet?

    Byfleet conveyancing on leasehold apartments normally necessitates the buyer’s lawyer sending questions for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is not legally bound to address these enquiries the majority will be willing to assist. They are entitled levy a reasonable charge for responding to questions or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average fee for the information that you are referring to is £350, in some transactions it is in excess of £800. The administration charge required by the landlord must be sent together with a synopsis of rights and obligations in relation to administration charges, otherwise the charge is technically not due. In reality you have no option but to pay whatever is requested of you if you want to exchange contracts with the buyer.

    When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Byfleet what are the most frequent lease defects?

    There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Byfleet. Most leases are individual and legal mistakes in the legal wording can result in certain clauses are erroneous. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

    • A provision to repair to or maintain parts of the building
    • Insurance obligations
    • A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
    • Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

    You may have a problem when selling your property if you have a defective lease as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Accord Mortgages Ltd, Norwich and Peterborough Building Society, and Aldermore all have very detailed requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to grant the mortgage, forcing the buyer to withdraw.

    Leasehold Conveyancing in Byfleet - A selection of Questions you should ask before Purchasing

      Best to be warned whether window replacement or some other major work is anticipated to be shared by the tenants and will materially impact the level of the service charges or require a specific invoice. The best form of lease arrangement is if the freehold title is in the ownership of the leaseholders. In this arrangement the lessees have control and notwithstanding that a managing agent is frequently employed if the building is bigger than a house conversion, the managing agent acts for the leaseholders themselves. Are any of leasehold owners in arrears of their service charge payments?

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Byfleet