Clifton leasehold conveyancing: Q and A’s
I want to rent out my leasehold apartment in Clifton. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask him. Do I need to ask my freeholder for their consent?
Even though your last Clifton conveyancing solicitor is no longer around you can review your lease to see if it allows you to sublet the property. The accepted inference is that if the deeds are non-specific, subletting is allowed. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you need to seek consent from your landlord or other appropriate person in advance of subletting. The net result is that you cannot sublet in the absence of first obtaining permission. Such consent is not allowed to be unreasonably withheld. If the lease prohibits you from subletting the property you should ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.
I only have Seventy years left on my lease in Clifton. I now wish to extend my lease but my freeholder is absent. What options are available to me?
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 enable the lease to be extended by the Court. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you have made all reasonable attempts to locate the lessor. For most situations a specialist should be helpful to conduct investigations and to produce a report which can be used as evidence that the landlord is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a property lawyer in relation to investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court covering Clifton.
Back In 2009, I bought a leasehold flat in Clifton. Conveyancing and Lloyds TSB Bank mortgage organised. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1996. The conveyancing practitioner in Clifton who previously acted has long since retired.What should I do?
The first thing you should do is make enquiries of HMLR to make sure that this person is in fact the new freeholder. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Clifton conveyancing lawyer to do this as it can be done on-line for a few pound. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.
I work for a reputable estate agency in Clifton where we have experienced a number of flat sales derailed due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given contradictory information from local Clifton conveyancing firms. Could you confirm whether the owner of a flat can start the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?
As long as the seller has owned the lease 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 can avoid having to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done prior to, or simultaneously with completion of the sale.
An alternative approach is 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.
Completion in due on the disposal of our £250000 garden flat in Clifton next week. The landlords agents has quoted £300 for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and previous years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in Clifton?
Clifton conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes usually necessitates the buyer’s lawyer submitting enquiries for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is not legally bound to address such questions most will be content to assist. They may invoice a reasonable administration fee for answering enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average fee for the paperwork that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some situations it is in excess of £800. The management information fee invoiced by the landlord must be sent together with a summary of entitlements and obligations in respect of administration charges, otherwise the invoice is not strictly payable. Reality however dictates that you have little option but to pay whatever is requested of you if you want to sell the property.
I own a leasehold flat in Clifton, conveyancing was carried out in 1995. Can you let me have an estimate of the premium that my landlord can legally expect in return for granting a renewal of my lease? Equivalent flats in Clifton with over 90 years remaining are worth £212,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £45 yearly. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2083
With just 58 years remaining on your lease we estimate the price of your lease extension to range between £25,700 and £29,600 as well as plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.
The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs without more comprehensive investigations. Do not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt additional issues that need to be taken into account and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action placing reliance on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.
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