Guaranteed fixed fees for Leasehold Conveyancing in Crosby

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Top Five Questions relating to Crosby leasehold conveyancing

There are only 62 years remaining on my lease in Crosby. I need to extend my lease but my landlord is missing. What should I do?

If you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be extended by the Court. However, you will be required to prove that you have used your best endeavours to track down the landlord. On the whole an enquiry agent should be useful to conduct investigations and to produce an expert document to be accepted by the court as evidence that the landlord is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a conveyancer both on devolving into the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court covering Crosby.

Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my ground floor apartment in Crosby.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just had a yearly service charge invoice – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should 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 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.

I've recently bought a leasehold house in Crosby. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to my ownership?

In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. Strange as it may seem, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to ensure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.

If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).

What advice can you give us when it comes to finding a Crosby conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a solicitor for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Crosby conveyancing firm) it is most important that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We recommend that you make enquires with several firms including non Crosby conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be helpful:

  • What volume of lease extensions has the firm completed in Crosby in the last year?
  • Can they put you in touch with client in Crosby who can give a testimonial?

    • Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Crosby from the perspective of speeding up the sale process?

    • Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Crosby can be reduced if you appoint lawyers the minute you market your property and ask them to collate the leasehold documentation which will be required by the purchasers’ representatives.
    • Many landlords or managing agents in Crosby charge for supplying management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should find out the actual amount of the charges. The management pack sought as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most common reason for frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Crosby.
  • In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s approval? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Crosby leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or laying down wooden flooring require a licence from the Landlord consenting to such changes. Should you fail to have the paperwork to hand you should not contact the landlord without checking with your conveyancer before hand.
  • Some Crosby leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers put in hand financial (bank) and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is able to meet 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 believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be advisable verify this by asking your conveyancers. A purchaser's lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to to exchange contracts if the lease term is under 80 years. In the circumstances it is important at an as soon as possible that you identify whether the lease term requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

    • I inherited a studio flat in Crosby, conveyancing formalities finalised 6 years ago. How much will my lease extension cost? Similar properties in Crosby with an extended lease are worth £266,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 levied per year. The lease terminates on 21st October 2079

    You have 55 years left to run the likely cost is going to span between £27,600 and £31,800 plus 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 are not able to supply the actual costs in the absence of comprehensive due diligence. You should not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt additional issues that need to be taken into account and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward placing reliance on this information without first getting professional advice.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Crosby