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Recently asked questions relating to Chesham leasehold conveyancing

There are only 72 years unexpired on my lease in Chesham. I now wish to extend my lease but my freeholder is absent. What should I do?

On the basis that you meet the appropriate requirements, 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 granted an extra 90 years by the Court. You will be obliged to prove that you have done all that could be expected to find the landlord. On the whole an enquiry agent should be useful to conduct investigations and to produce an expert document which can be used as evidence that the landlord can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a conveyancer in relation to devolving into the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court covering Chesham.

Expecting to sign contracts shortly on a leasehold property in Chesham. Conveyancing lawyers inform me that they report fully within the next couple of days. What should I be looking out for?

Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Chesham should include some of the following:

  • You should be sent a copy of the lease
  • The unexpired lease term You should be advised as what happens when the lease expires, and aware of the importance of the 80 year mark
  • Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, landlord
  • Defining your legal entitlements in respect of common areas in the building.By way of example, does the lease grant a right of way over an accessway or staircase?
  • Whether your lease has a provision for a sinking fund?
  • The landlord’s obligations to repair and maintain the building. It is important that you know who is responsible for the repair and maintenance of every part of the building
  • Responsibility for repairing the window frames For details of the information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Chesham please ask your lawyer in advance of your conveyancing in Chesham

    • Last month I purchased a leasehold flat in Chesham. Do I have any liability for 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. A critical element 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).

    Can you offer any advice when it comes to choosing a Chesham conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

    When appointing a property lawyer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Chesham conveyancing firm) it is essential that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We advise that you make enquires with two or three firms including non Chesham conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions could be useful:

    • How familiar is the firm with lease extension legislation?
  • If they are not ALEP accredited then why not?

    • Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Chesham with the purpose of speeding up the sale process?

    • A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Chesham can be avoided if you appoint lawyers the minute your agents start advertising the property and ask them to put together the leasehold information needed by the purchasers’ representatives.
    • The majority freeholders or Management Companies in Chesham levy fees for providing management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should discover the fee that they propose to charge. The management information can be applied for as soon as you have a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The average time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most common cause of frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Chesham.
  • If you have carried out any alterations to the premises would they have required Landlord’s consent? Have you, for example laid down wooden flooring? Chesham leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or installing wooden flooring require a licence from the Landlord acquiescing to such alterations. Should you fail to have the paperwork to hand do not communicate with the landlord without checking with your solicitor first.
  • A minority of Chesham leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this is the case, it would be prudent to notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand 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 actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their lawyers.
  • If you hold a share in a the freehold, you should ensure that you hold the original share certificate. Obtaining a re-issued share certificate is often a time consuming process and slows down many a Chesham conveyancing deal. Where a new share is necessary, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (if applicable) for this at the earliest opportunity.

    • Chesham Leasehold Conveyancing - Sample of Queries Prior to buying

      On the whole the cost for major works are not included within service charges, although a few managing agents in Chesham ask tenants to pay into a reserve fund created for the specific intention of building a fund for major repairs or maintenance. How many of the leaseholders are in arrears for their maintenance charge payments? Be sure to enquire if there is anything that is prohibited in the lease. For example it is reasonably common in Chesham leases that pets are not permitted in certain buildings in Chesham. If you like the propertyin Chesham but your cat can’t make the move with you then you have a very hard decision.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Chesham