I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Chopwell. Before diving in I want to be sure as to the unexpired term of the lease.

Assuming the lease is registered - and 99.9% are in Chopwell - then the leasehold title will always include the short particulars 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 just started marketing my 2 bed apartment in Chopwell.Conveyancing has not commenced but I have just received a yearly service charge invoice – what should I do?

It best that you pay 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.

Back In 2002, I bought a leasehold flat in Chopwell. Conveyancing and Birmingham Midshires mortgage went though with no issue. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1995. The conveyancing solicitor in Chopwell who previously acted has now retired.Any advice?

The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to make sure that this person is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. There is no need to instruct a Chopwell conveyancing firm to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for a few pound. Rest assured that regardless, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

I am looking at a two flats in Chopwell which have approximately 50 years remaining on the leases. Will this present a problem?

A lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the property for a prescribed time frame. As a lease gets shorter the saleability of the lease decreases and it becomes more expensive to acquire a lease extension. This is why it is generally wise to increase the term of the lease. It is often difficult to sell a property with a short lease because mortgage companies less inclined to grant a loan on such properties. Lease extension can be a difficult process. We recommend you get professional assistance from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this arena

I work for a reputable estate agency in Chopwell where we have witnessed a number of leasehold sales derailed due to short leases. I have been given conflicting advice from local Chopwell conveyancing solicitors. Please can you shed some light as to whether the vendor of a flat can commence 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 commence 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 sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. 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 sale.

Alternatively, it may be possible 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.

Chopwell Leasehold Conveyancing - Sample of Questions you should consider before Purchasing

Its a good idea to discover as much as possible regarding the managing agents as they will either make living at the property much simpler or much more difficult. Being a leasehold owner you are frequently in the clutches of the managing agents both financially and when it comes to practical issues such as the upkeep of the communal areas. Ask other people if they are happy with their management. In conclusion, investigate as to the dates that you are obliged pay the maintenance charge to the appropriate party and specifically how they are spending the funds. Make sure you investigate if there is anything that is prohibited in the lease. By way of example it is reasonably common in Chopwell leases that pets are not allowed in in a block in Chopwell. If you like the apartmentin Chopwell but your cat can’t move with you then you have a very hard decision. What prohibitions are there in the Chopwell Lease?

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Chopwell