Due to sign contracts shortly on a garden flat in Crabtree. Conveyancing lawyers inform me that they report fully tomorrow. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Crabtree should include some of the following:

• You should be sent a copy of the lease

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a two apartments in Crabtree which have approximately forty five years unexpired on the lease term. should I be concerned?

There is no doubt about it. A leasehold apartment in Crabtree is a deteriorating asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The nearer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it reduces the value of the premises. The majority of buyers and banks, leases with under 75 years become less and less marketable. On a more upbeat note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the property for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of property with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Crabtree conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. A more straightforward and quicker method of extending would be to contact your landlord directly and sound him out on the prospect of extending the lease You may find he or she is happy to negotiate informally and willing to consider your offer straight off, without having to involve anyone else. This will save you time and money and it could help you reach a lower price on the lease. You need to ensure that the agreed terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.

I am a negotiator for a long established estate agency in Crabtree where we have experienced a few flat sales derailed due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given conflicting advice from local Crabtree conveyancing solicitors. Please can you confirm whether the seller of a flat can instigate the lease extension process for the buyer?

As long as the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to kick-start 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 sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed before, 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 buyer.

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

If you are instructing a property lawyer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Crabtree conveyancing practice) it is most important that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We advise that you speak with two or three firms including non Crabtree conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions could be of use:

• If the firm is not ALEP accredited then why not?

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Crabtree from the perspective of speeding up the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Crabtree can be reduced if you get in touch lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation needed by the buyers solicitors.
• If you have carried out any alterations to the property would they have required Landlord’s consent? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Crabtree state that internal structural alterations or laying down wooden flooring calls for a licence issued by the Landlord consenting to such changes. Where you dont have the paperwork in place do not contact the landlord without contacting your conveyancer in the first instance.

Crabtree Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Questions you should ask Prior to buying

Are there any major works in the planning that could add a premium to the service charges? Generally speaking the cost for major works tend not to be included within maintenance charges, albeit that a few managing agents in Crabtree require tenants to contribute towards a sinking fund and this is used to offset against major works. Many Crabtree leasehold flats will incur a service bill for maintenance of the building set on behalf of the management company. Should you acquire the flat you will have to pay this charge, normally quarterly accross the year. This may be anything from a couple of hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for buildings with lifts and large common areas. In all likelihood there will be a ground rent for you to pay yearly, normally this is not a large figure, say about £50-£100 but you need to enquire as on occasion it can be prohibitively expensive.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Crabtree