I am intending to let out my leasehold flat in Chesham Bois. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask him. Is permission from the freeholder required?

A lease governs the relationship between the landlord and you the leaseholder; in particular, it will indicate if subletting is prohibited, or permitted but only subject to certain conditions. The rule is that if the lease contains no specific ban or restriction, subletting is allowed. Most leases in Chesham Bois do not prevent an absolute prevention of subletting – such a provision would undoubtedly devalue the flat. Instead, there is usually simply a requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly supplying a copy of the tenancy agreement.

I've found a house that appears to meet my requirements, at a great figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have since been informed that the title is leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are issues buying a leasehold house in Chesham Bois. Conveyancing lawyers have are about to be appointed. Will my lawyers set out the implications of buying a leasehold house in Chesham Bois ?

Most houses in Chesham Bois are freehold and not leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer used to dealing with such properties who can assist with the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are buying in Chesham Bois so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Chesham Bois conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they have experience in dealing with leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. As a tenant you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions such as requiring the landlord’sconsent to carry out changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a maintenance charge towards the upkeep of the estate where the house is located on an estate. Your conveyancer will appraise you on the various issues.

I am looking at a couple of flats in Chesham Bois which have about fifty years remaining on the leases. should I be concerned?

A lease is a right to use the premises for a period of time. As the lease shortens the value of the lease reduces and results in it becoming more costly to extend the lease. This is why it is often a good idea to increase the term of the lease. It is often difficult to sell a property with a short lease as 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 solicitor and surveyor with experience in this area

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Chesham Bois from the point of view of saving time on the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Chesham Bois can be avoided if you get in touch lawyers the minute you market your property and request that they start to collate the leasehold documentation needed by the purchasers’ conveyancers.
• A minority of Chesham Bois leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, you should place the estate agents on notice 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 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 service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their lawyers.

If there is a history of conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is essential that these are settled before the property is marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where a dispute is unresolved. 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 ahead of 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 better to present the dispute as historic as opposed to unresolved.

If you are supposed to have a share in the Management Company, you should make sure that you hold the original share document. Organising a re-issued share certificate can be a time consuming formality and slows down many a Chesham Bois home move. If a duplicate share is needed, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (if applicable) for this at the earliest opportunity.

You may think that you are aware of the number of years remaining on your lease but you should verify this by asking your conveyancers. A buyer’s conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the lease term is under 75 years. In the circumstances it is essential at an early stage that you identify whether the lease term requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on the sale of our £300000 maisonette in Chesham Bois next Friday . The management company has quoted £360 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and 3 years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge an administration fee for a leasehold conveyance in Chesham Bois?

For most leasehold sales in Chesham Bois conveyancing will involve, queries regarding the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :

• Completing conveyancing due diligence questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Chesham Bois
• Supplying insurance information
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your conveyancer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Chesham Bois leasehold premises is £350. For Chesham Bois conveyancing transactions it is customary for the seller to pay for these costs. The landlord or their agents are under no legal obligation to answer such questions most will be willing to do so - albeit often at exorbitant prices where the fees bear little relation to the work involved. Unfortunately there is no law that requires fixed charges for administrative tasks. Neither is there any legal time frame by which they are required to provide answers.

Chesham Bois Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Questions you should consider Prior to buying

How is the lease structured? You should be aware that where the lease has less than 80 years it will affect the value of the flat. It is worth checking with your bank that they are willing to lend given the lease term. Leases with less than 80 years remaining means that you will most likely require a lease extension sooner rather than later and it is worth discovering how much this would cost. For most Chesham Boislease extensions you would need to own the property for a couple of years in order to be legally able to extend the lease. It is important to be aware whether redecorating or some other significant cost is due shortly to be shared between the leaseholders and will materially impact the level of the maintenance fees or result in a specific payment.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Chesham Bois