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Leasehold conveyancing in Culcheth is more complex than freehold. Your home move will be smoother where you choose a lawyer with a wealth of experience of leasehold conveyancing in Culcheth and next step up in loc. The lawyers we recommend have been approved by your lender so use our search tool to check.

Common questions relating to Culcheth leasehold conveyancing

Frank (my husband) and I may need to let out our Culcheth ground floor flat for a while due to a career opportunity. We used a Culcheth conveyancing practice in 2004 but they have since shut and we did not think at the time get any advice as to whether the lease permits subletting. How do we find out?

A small minority of properties in Culcheth do contain a provision to say that subletting is only permitted with prior consent from the landlord. The landlord cannot unreasonably withhold but, in such cases, they would need to see references. Experience dictates that problems are usually caused by unsatisfactory tenants rather than owner-occupiers and for that reason you can expect the freeholder to take up the references and consider them carefully before granting consent.

I have just started marketing my garden apartment in Culcheth.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just received a yearly maintenance charge invoice – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

It best that you discharge 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 unless 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. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold house in Culcheth. Conveyancing and Norwich and Peterborough Building Society mortgage are in place. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the freehold. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1992. The conveyancing solicitor in Culcheth who acted for me is not around.Do I pay?

First contact the Land Registry to make sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. You do not need to incur the fees of a Culcheth conveyancing lawyer to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. 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 am attracted to a two maisonettes in Culcheth which have in the region of 50 years remaining on the leases. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

There are plenty of short leases in Culcheth. The lease is a right to use the premises for a period of time. As a lease shortens the marketability of the lease reduces and it becomes more costly to extend the lease. This is why it is generally wise to extend the lease term. It is often difficult to sell a property with a short lease because mortgage companies less inclined to grant a loan on properties of this type. Lease extension can be a protracted process. We advise that you get professional help from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this arena

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Culcheth from the perspective of saving time on the sale process?

  • A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Culcheth can be reduced where you appoint lawyers as soon as you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers representatives.
  • The majority landlords or Management Companies in Culcheth charge for supplying management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should find out 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 receive management information is three weeks. It is the most usual reason for frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Culcheth.
  • Some Culcheth leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. Any bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are able to meet 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 service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their lawyers.
  • If there is a history of conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are resolved prior to the flat being put on the market. The purchasers 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 pay any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose details of the dispute to the buyers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as over as opposed to unsettled.
  • If you have the benefit of shareholding in the freehold, you should make sure that you have the original share document. Arranging a replacement share certificate can be a lengthy process and slows down many a Culcheth conveyancing transaction. Where a new share certificate is necessary, do contact the company officers or managing agents (if relevant) for this as soon as possible.

    • I invested in buying a studio flat in Culcheth, conveyancing having been completed 5 years ago. 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? Corresponding properties in Culcheth with an extended lease are worth £223,000. The ground rent is £55 yearly. The lease finishes on 21st October 2097

    You have 72 years left to run the likely cost is going to span between £10,500 and £12,000 plus legals.

    The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure without more comprehensive investigations. You should not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt other concerns that need to be considered and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward based on this information before getting professional advice.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Culcheth