Looking forward to exchange soon on a ground floor flat in Crowland. Conveyancing solicitors assured me that they will have a report out to me on Monday. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Crowland should include some of the following:

• Does the lease prevent you from subletting the property, or having a home office for business

You should have a good understanding of the insurance provisions

I don't know whether the lease allows me to alter or improve anything in the flat - you should know whether it applies to all alterations or just structural alteration, and whether consent is required

The landlord’s rights to access the flat you be made aware that your landlord has rights of access and I know how much notice s/he must provide.

Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your property and do you know what it means in practice?

Responsibility for repairing the window frames

What the implications are if you breach a clause of your lease? For details of the information to be included in your report on your leasehold property in Crowland please ask your lawyer in ahead of your conveyancing in Crowland

Back In 2005, I bought a leasehold flat in Crowland. Conveyancing and Britannia mortgage are in place. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1992. The conveyancing practitioner in Crowland who acted for me is not around.What should I do?

First make enquiries of HMLR to be sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is indeed the new freeholder. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Crowland conveyancing lawyer to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for a few pound. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

Can you offer any advice when it comes to choosing a Crowland conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

If you are instructing a conveyancer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Crowland conveyancing firm) it is essential that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We suggested that you talk with two or three firms including non Crowland conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions could be useful:

• How experienced is the practice with lease extension legislation?

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

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Crowland with the intention of speeding up the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Crowland can be bypassed where you appoint lawyers the minute your agents start marketing the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers solicitors.
• The majority landlords or Management Companies in Crowland levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the fee that they propose to charge. The management information can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most common cause of frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Crowland.

A minority of Crowland 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 obtain financial (bank) and professional references. The bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is financially capable of paying the annual 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 actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their solicitors.

If there is a history of conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are settled before the property is put on the market. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where there is a current dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to discharge any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as over rather than unresolved.

You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be wise to verify this via your lawyers. A buyer’s lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the remaining number of years is under 80 years. It is therefore important at an early stage 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.

Completion in due on our sale of a £500000 apartment in Crowland in just under a week. The freeholder has quoted £348 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and 3 years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge an administration fee for a leasehold conveyance in Crowland?

For most leasehold sales in Crowland conveyancing will involve, questions about the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :

• Completing conveyancing due diligence questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Crowland
• Supplying insurance information
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your conveyancer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Crowland leasehold property is £350. For Crowland 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.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Crowland - A selection of Queries before buying

Is the freehold owned jointly by the leaseholders? You will want to find out as much as possible concerning the company managing the building as they will either make living at the property much easier or problematic. As the owner of a leasehold property you are often at the mercy of the managing agents from a financial perspective and when it comes to day to day matters such as the cleanliness of the common parts. Don't be shy to ask other tenants what they think of their service. In conclusion, be sure you know the dates that the service fees are due to the managing agents and specifically what you get for your money. Are there any major works on the horizon that will add a premium to the service fees?

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Crowland