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Common questions relating to Callington leasehold conveyancing

I am attracted to a two maisonettes in Callington both have approximately 50 years remaining on the lease term. Do I need to be concerned?

A lease is a right to use the premises for a prescribed time frame. As the lease gets shorter the value of the lease reduces and it becomes more expensive to acquire a lease extension. This is why it is often a good idea to extend the lease term. It is often difficult to sell a property with a short lease because mortgage lenders less inclined to grant a loan on such properties. Lease enfranchisement can be a difficult process. We recommend you get professional help from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this field

I am a negotiator for a reputable estate agency in Callington where we see a few leasehold sales jeopardised as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given conflicting advice from local Callington conveyancing firms. Please can you clarify whether the vendor of a flat can initiate the lease extension process for the buyer?

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 for a lease extension. 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 purchaser.

What are your top tips when it comes to choosing a Callington conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

If you are instructing a conveyancer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Callington conveyancing firm) it is most important that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We suggested that you talk with several firms including non Callington conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions could be of use:

  • How experienced is the firm with lease extension legislation?
  • Can they put you in touch with client in Callington who can give a testimonial?

    • Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Callington from the perspective of saving time on the sale process?

    • Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Callington can be avoided if you get in touch lawyers the minute your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to collate the leasehold documentation needed by the buyers representatives.
    • Many freeholders or Management Companies in Callington levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should discover the actual amount of the charges. The management information can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus reducing delays. 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 Callington.
  • Some Callington leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, you should notify your estate agents 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 buyers or their lawyers.
  • If you have had conflict with your landlord 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 nervous about purchasing a flat where there is an ongoing dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to 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 clearly preferable to present the dispute as over rather than unresolved.
  • You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be advisable double-check via your lawyers. A buyer’s lawyer will not be happy to advise their client to where the remaining number of years is less than 75 years. It is therefore essential at an as soon as possible that you consider whether the lease for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale.

    • All being well we will complete the sale of our £300000 apartment in Callington in 8 days. The management company has quoted £324 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and 3 years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge an administration fee for a flat conveyance in Callington?

    Callington conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes often requires the purchaser’s solicitor submitting questions for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to address such questions the majority will be content to assist. They may charge a reasonable charge for answering questions or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average costs for the information that you are referring to is £350, in some situations it is in excess of £800. The administration charge demanded by the landlord must be accompanied by a synopsis of rights and obligations in relation to administration charges, otherwise the charge is not strictly payable. In reality one has little option but to pay whatever is requested of you if you want to sell the property.

    I am the registered owner of a 1st floor flat in Callington, conveyancing formalities finalised 2002. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Corresponding flats in Callington with an extended lease are worth £185,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 per annum. The lease ends on 21st October 2098

    With just 73 years remaining on your lease we estimate the premium for your lease extension to range between £7,600 and £8,800 as well as legals.

    The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to advice on the actual costs in the absence of detailed due diligence. You should not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt other issues that need to be considered and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward based on this information without first getting professional advice.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Callington