Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Crowborough. Before diving in I want to be sure as to the remaining lease term.

If the lease is registered - and most are in Crowborough - then the leasehold title will always include the short particulars 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.

Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my 2 bed apartment in Crowborough.Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon but I have just received a yearly maintenance charge invoice – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should clear the service charge 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 managing agents 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 am looking at a couple of maisonettes in Crowborough which have in the region of 50 years remaining on the lease term. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

A lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the property for a prescribed time frame. As the lease gets shorter the marketability of the lease decreases and it becomes more costly to extend the lease. This is why it is often a good idea to extend the lease term. Sometimes it is difficult to sell a property with a short lease as mortgage companies less inclined to grant a loan on such properties. Lease extension can be a protracted process. We advise that you get professional assistance from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this arena

I am employed by a busy estate agent office in Crowborough where we have witnessed a few flat sales jeopardised as a result of short leases. I have received inconsistent advice from local Crowborough conveyancing firms. Can you clarify 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 start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the proposed purchaser can avoid having to wait 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 sale.

Alternatively, it may be possible 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 purchaser.

All being well we will complete our sale of a £325000 garden flat in Crowborough on Thursday in a week. The freeholder has quoted £408 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and previous years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Crowborough?

Crowborough conveyancing on leasehold flats typically necessitates administration charges invoiced by management companies :

• Completing conveyancing due diligence questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Crowborough
• Copies of the building insurance and schedule
• 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 Crowborough leasehold premises is £350. For Crowborough 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 supply answers.

Crowborough Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Sample of Queries before Purchasing

The prefered form of lease arrangement is a share of the freehold. In this arrangement the tenants enjoy control and even though a managing agent is usually retained if it is bigger than a house conversion, the managing agent is directed by the tenants. On the whole the cost for major works are not included within maintenance charges, although some managing agents in Crowborough ask leaseholders to pay into a reserve fund created for the specific purpose of building a fund for major works. You should want to discover as much as you can about the managing agents as they will affect your use and enjoyment of the property. Being a leasehold owner you will be in the clutches of the managing agents from a financial perspective and when it comes to practical issues like the upkeep of the communal areas. Enquire of other tenants whether they are happy with them. Finally, be sure you understand the dates that the service fees are due to the managing agents and specifically how they are spending that money.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Crowborough