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Top Five Questions relating to Chalfont St Peter leasehold conveyancing

Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Chalfont St Peter. Before diving in I would like to find out the remaining lease term.

If the lease is registered - and almost all are in Chalfont St Peter - then the leasehold title will always include the basic details of the lease, namely the date; the term; and the original parties. From a conveyancing perspective such details then enable any prospective buyer and lender to confirm that any lease they are looking at is the one relevant to that title.For any other purpose, such as confirming how long the term was granted for and calculating what is left, then the register should be sufficient on it's own.

I wish to sublet my leasehold flat in Chalfont St Peter. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask her. Do I need to ask my freeholder for permission?

Notwithstanding that your previous Chalfont St Peter conveyancing solicitor is no longer around you can check your lease to check if you are permitted to let out the premises. The accepted inference is that if the deeds are silent, subletting is allowed. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you must seek consent from your landlord or some other party in advance of subletting. This means you not allowed to sublet in the absence of prior consent. Such consent must not not be unreasonably withheld. If the lease does not allow you to sublet you will need to ask your landlord for their consent.

I have just appointed agents to market my basement flat in Chalfont St Peter.Conveyancing has not commenced but I have just received a yearly maintenance charge demand – 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 until 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.

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

  • A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Chalfont St Peter can be reduced where you instruct lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and ask them to collate the leasehold documentation needed by the buyers representatives.
  • If you have carried out any alterations to the property would they have required Landlord’s consent? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Chalfont St Peter leases often stipulate that internal structural changes or addition of wooden flooring necessitate a licence from the Landlord acquiescing to such changes. Should you dont have the consents in place you should not contact the landlord without checking with your solicitor first.
  • A minority of Chalfont St Peter leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, it would be prudent to 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 able to meet the yearly 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 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 marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be concerned about purchasing a property where there is an ongoing dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to pay any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to completion of the sale. 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 details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as over rather than ongoing.
  • You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be wise to double-check via your solicitors. A buyer’s conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to to exchange contracts if the remaining number of years is less than 80 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.

    • Following years of negotiations we simply can't agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Chalfont St Peter. Can we issue an application to the Residential Property Tribunal Service?

    Absolutely. We are happy to put you in touch with a Chalfont St Peter conveyancing firm who can help.

    An example of a Lease Extension case for a Chalfont St Peter property is Flats 8, 11 and 15 Craigmore Court 46 Murray Road in December 2013. The tribunal held that the price payable by the Applicant tenant of Flat 8 to acquire an extended lease shall be £26,438 plus £1 to the intermediate lessee . The tribunal held that the price payable by the Applicant tenants of Flat 11 to acquire an extended lease shall be £26,791 plus £1 to the intermediate lessee. The tribunal held that the price payable by the Applicant tenant of Flat 15 to acquire an extended lease shall be £26,638 plus £1 to the intermediate lessee . This case was in relation to 3 flats. The unexpired term was 71 years.

    What makes a Chalfont St Peter lease problematic?

    There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Chalfont St Peter. Most leases are individual and drafting errors can result in certain sections are wrong. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

    • A provision to repair to or maintain parts of the building
    • A duty to insure the building
    • Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
    • Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

    You could encounter difficulties when selling your property if you have a defective lease as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Yorkshire Building Society, Norwich and Peterborough Building Society, and Britannia 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 provide security, obliging the purchaser to withdraw.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Chalfont St Peter