Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Cheddleton. Before diving in I require certainty as to the remaining lease term.

If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and most are in Cheddleton - 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 have recently realised that I have Sixty One years unexpired on my lease in Cheddleton. I am keen to extend my lease but my landlord is missing. What are my options?

If you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be extended by the magistrate. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have used your best endeavours to track down the freeholder. On the whole an enquiry agent would be helpful to carry out a search and to produce a report which can be accepted by the court as evidence that the freeholder can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a solicitor in relation to proving the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court overseeing Cheddleton.

I have just appointed agents to market my ground floor apartment in Cheddleton.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just received a quarterly service charge invoice – Do I pay up?

The sensible thing to do is clear the service charge 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 managing agents 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.

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a couple of maisonettes in Cheddleton which have about fifty years unexpired on the leases. should I be concerned?

A lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the property for a prescribed time frame. As a lease shortens the value of the lease deteriorate and it becomes more expensive to extend the lease. For this reason it is often a good idea to increase the term of the lease. More often than not it is difficult to sell a property with a short lease because mortgage companies less inclined to grant a loan on properties of this type. Lease extension can be a protracted process. We recommend you seek professional help from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this arena

I am employed by a reputable estate agent office in Cheddleton where we have witnessed a number of flat sales derailed as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received inconsistent advice from local Cheddleton conveyancing firms. Please can you shed some light as to whether the seller of a flat can initiate the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the buyer can avoid having to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done prior to, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

An alternative approach is 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 purchaser.

Cheddleton Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Queries Prior to buying

The best form of lease structure is where the freehold title is owned by the leaseholders. In this situation the leaseholders enjoy control and even though a managing agent is often retained where the building is larger than a house conversion, the managing agent employed by the leaseholders. What restrictions exist in the Cheddleton Lease? Best to be warned if a new roof is being put on or some other significant cost is coming up that will be shared between the tenants and will dramatically impact the level of the maintenance costs or necessitate a one off payment.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Cheddleton