Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Chipping Sodbury:

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When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Chipping Sodbury, you will need to appoint a conveyancing solicitor with leasehold experience. Whether your lender is to be Clydesdale , Yorkshire Building Society or NatWest make sure you choose a lawyer on their panel. Find a Chipping Sodbury conveyancing lawyer with our search tool

Sample questions relating to Chipping Sodbury leasehold conveyancing

I only have Sixty One years left on my lease in Chipping Sodbury. I now wish to get lease extension but my landlord is can not be found. What are my options?

On the basis that you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be extended by the Court. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have done all that could be expected to track down the landlord. On the whole a specialist may be useful to try and locate and to produce an expert document which can be accepted by the court as proof that the freeholder can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a property lawyer in relation to proving the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court covering Chipping Sodbury.

I am attracted to a couple of maisonettes in Chipping Sodbury which have approximately 50 years left on the leases. Will this present a problem?

A lease is a right to use the property for a period of time. As a lease gets shorter the marketability of the lease deteriorate and results in it becoming more costly to acquire a lease extension. This is why it is generally wise to extend the lease term. More often than not it is difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease as mortgage lenders may be unwilling to lend money on such properties. Lease enfranchisement can be a protracted process. We advise that you seek professional help from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this arena

I work for a long established estate agency in Chipping Sodbury where we have witnessed a few leasehold sales jeopardised as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received contradictory information from local Chipping Sodbury conveyancing firms. Could 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 start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the buyer need not have to wait 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

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.

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Chipping Sodbury from the point of view of speeding up the sale process?

  • Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Chipping Sodbury can be avoided where you instruct lawyers the minute your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers representatives.
  • The majority landlords or managing agents in Chipping Sodbury levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should find out the fee that they propose to charge. The management information can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus reducing delays. The typical amount of time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most frequent cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in Chipping Sodbury.
  • If you have carried out any alterations to the residence would they have required Landlord’s permission? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Chipping Sodbury leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or installing wooden flooring require a licence from the Landlord acquiescing to such works. If you fail to have the paperwork to hand do not contact the landlord without contacting your lawyer in the first instance.
  • A minority of Chipping Sodbury leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, it would be prudent to place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. The 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 actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their solicitors.
  • You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but it would be wise to double-check via your lawyers. A buyer’s lawyer will not be happy to advise their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the remaining number of years is below 80 years. In the circumstances it is important at an as soon as possible that you consider whether the lease requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

    • What makes a Chipping Sodbury lease defective?

    There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Chipping Sodbury. Most leases are unique and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain provisions are not included. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

    • Repairing obligations to or maintain elements of the building
    • A duty to insure the building
    • A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
    • Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

    You may have difficulties when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Halifax, Skipton Building Society, and Aldermore all have express requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is defective they may refuse to grant the mortgage, forcing the purchaser to pull out.

    I bought a studio flat in Chipping Sodbury, conveyancing having been completed 1995. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Similar properties in Chipping Sodbury with a long lease are worth £250,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £45 invoiced annually. The lease finishes on 21st October 2084

    You have 60 years left to run we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £20,900 and £24,200 as well as legals.

    The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure without more detailed investigations. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other issues that need to be considered and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward placing reliance on this information without first getting professional advice.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Chipping Sodbury