Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Cinderford. Before diving in I require certainty as to the remaining lease term.

If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and almost all are in Cinderford - then the leasehold title will always include the basic details 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've found a house that seems to be perfect, at a great price which is making it all the more appealing. I have since found out that the title is leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are particular concerns buying a leasehold house in Cinderford. Conveyancing lawyers have are soon to be instructed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Cinderford are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area can help the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are purchasing in Cinderford so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Cinderford conveyancing practitioner 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 leaseholder you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions such as requiring the landlord’spermission to conduct changes to the property. You may also be required to pay a maintenance charge towards the upkeep of the estate where the property is part of an estate. Your solicitor should appraise you on the various issues.

What advice can you give us when it comes to choosing a Cinderford conveyancing firm to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

If you are instructing a conveyancer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Cinderford conveyancing firm) it is imperative that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We suggested that you make enquires with two or three firms including non Cinderford conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be of use:

• How familiar is the practice with lease extension legislation?

Can they put you in touch with client in Cinderford who can give a testimonial?

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Cinderford with the purpose of saving time on the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Cinderford can be avoided where you get in touch lawyers as soon as you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold information needed by the purchasers’ solicitors.
• Some Cinderford leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand 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 purchasers or their lawyers.

If there is a history of conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved before the property is put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be concerned about purchasing a property where a dispute is unsettled. You may have to bite the bullet and pay any arrears of service charge or resolve 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 are still duty bound to disclose particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to reveal the dispute as over as opposed to ongoing.

If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should ensure that you are holding the original share document. Organising a new share certificate is often a lengthy formality and frustrates many a Cinderford conveyancing deal. Where a duplicate share certificate is needed, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (where applicable) for this as soon as possible.

You may think that you are aware of the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be advisable double-check by asking your lawyers. A purchaser's conveyancer will be unlikely to recommend their client to where the remaining number of years is below 80 years. It is therefore important at an as soon as possible that you identify whether the lease term for your property needs extending. 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 £150000 flat in Cinderford next week. The managing agents has quoted £372 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and previous years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge an administration fee for a leasehold conveyance in Cinderford?

For most leasehold sales in Cinderford 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 enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in Cinderford
• Supplying insurance information
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your solicitor will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Cinderford leasehold premises is £350. For Cinderford 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.

Cinderford Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Queries Prior to buying

Does the lease have onerous restrictions? Make sure you find out if there is anything that is prohibited in the lease. For example it is reasonably common in Cinderford leases that pets are not permitted in in a block in Cinderford. If you love the propertyin Cinderford however your dog is not allowed to make the move with you then you will be presented with a hard compromise. Are any of leasehold owners in arrears of their service charge payments?

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Cinderford