Quality lawyers for Leasehold Conveyancing in Chorley

Get a Quote

When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Chorley, you will need to appoint a conveyancing practitioner with leasehold experience. Whether your mortgage company is to be Clydesdale , Birmingham Midshires or Bradford & Bingley make sure you choose a lawyer on their panel. Find a Chorley conveyancing lawyer with our search tool

Chorley leasehold conveyancing Example Support Desk Enquiries

Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my basement apartment in Chorley.Conveyancing has not commenced but I have just had a yearly service charge demand – what should I do?

The sensible thing to do is clear 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 unless 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. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

Can you offer any advice when it comes to appointing a Chorley conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

When appointing a solicitor for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Chorley conveyancing practice) it is imperative that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We advise that you talk with two or three firms including non Chorley conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions could be helpful:

  • How experienced is the firm with lease extension legislation?
  • What are the costs for lease extension conveyancing?

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

    • Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Chorley can be reduced where you instruct lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and ask them to collate the leasehold information needed by the purchasers’ representatives.
    • Many landlords or managing agents in Chorley charge for supplying management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should find out the actual amount of the charges. The management pack sought on or before finding a buyer, thus reducing delays. The typical amount of time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most common reason for frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Chorley.
  • If you have carried out any alterations to the premises would they have required Landlord’s permission? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Chorley state that internal structural alterations or laying down wooden flooring require a licence from the Landlord approving such works. Should you fail to have the paperwork in place you should not contact the landlord without checking with your conveyancer in advance.
  • A minority of Chorley leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, it would be prudent to notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are financially capable of paying the yearly 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 buyers or their lawyers.
  • You may think that you are aware of the number of years left on your lease but it would be advisable verify this via your solicitors. A purchaser's lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to where the remaining number of years is under 80 years. It is therefore important at an early stage that you consider whether the lease term requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale.

    • Completion in due on the sale of our £150000 flat in Chorley in just under a week. The landlords agents has quoted £360 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and 3 years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge such fees for a leasehold conveyance in Chorley?

    Chorley conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes usually requires the buyer’s conveyancer submitting enquiries for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to address such questions most will be content to assist. They are at liberty invoice a reasonable administration fee for answering questions or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average costs for the information that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some transactions it is in excess of £800. The management information fee required by the landlord must be sent together with a summary of rights and obligations in relation to administration fees, without which the invoice is not strictly payable. Reality however dictates that one has little choice but to pay whatever is demanded if you want to sell the property.

    What makes a Chorley lease unmortgageable?

    Leasehold conveyancing in Chorley is not unique. All leases are individual and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain clauses are erroneous. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

    • A provision to repair to or maintain parts of the property
    • 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 a problem when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Barclays , Chelsea Building Society, and Alliance & Leicester all have express requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to grant the mortgage, forcing the purchaser to withdraw.

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

      Plenty Chorley leasehold flats will have a service bill for the upkeep of the building invoiced on behalf of the management company. If you acquire the flat you will have to meet this liability, usually periodically during the year. This could differ from two or three hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for blocks with lifts and large common grounds. There will also be a ground rent for you to pay yearly, this is usually not a large figure, say approximately £50-£100 but you should to check as on occasion it could be surprisingly expensive. You should be aware that where the lease has less than eighty years it will affect the marketability of the property. Check with your mortgage company that they are happy with remaining years on the lease. A short lease means that you will most likely need a lease extension at some point and you need to have some idea of how much this will be. Remember, in most cases you will be be obliged to have owned the property for a couple of years before you are legally able to extend the lease. In the main the outlay for major works are not wrapped into the service charges, albeit that there some managing agents in Chorley ask leaseholders to pay into a sinking fund created for the specific purpose of establishing a fund for larger repairs or maintenance.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Chorley