I’m about to sell my basement flat in Danescourt.Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon but I have just received a half-yearly service charge invoice – what should I do?

The sensible thing to do is discharge 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 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. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

I today plan to offer on a house that appears to meet my requirements, at a reasonable price which is making it all the more appealing. I have since been informed that it's a leasehold as opposed to freehold. I would have thought that there are particular concerns purchasing a leasehold house in Danescourt. Conveyancing advisers have not yet been instructed. Will they explain the issues?

Most houses in Danescourt are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local conveyancer used to dealing with such properties who can help the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are purchasing in Danescourt in which case you should be shopping around for a Danescourt conveyancing practitioner and check that they are used to transacting on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. Being a tenant you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions such as obtaining the landlord’sconsent to conduct alterations. It may be necessary to pay a service charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the property is located on an estate. Your conveyancer should report to you on the legal implications.

Last month I purchased a leasehold house in Danescourt. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner 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. It is an essential part 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).

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Danescourt from the perspective of speeding up the sale process?

• Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Danescourt can be avoided if you appoint lawyers the minute you market your property and ask them to collate the leasehold documentation needed by the purchasers’ conveyancers.
• The majority freeholders or Management Companies in Danescourt levy fees for providing management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should find out the actual amount of the charges. The management information 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 cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in Danescourt.

In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s consent? Have you, for example laid down wooden flooring? Most leases in Danescourt state that internal structural changes or installing wooden flooring calls for a licence from the Landlord acquiescing to such changes. Should you dont have the paperwork to hand you should not contact the landlord without contacting your conveyancer in the first instance.

Some Danescourt leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this is the case, it would be prudent to notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are 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 purchasers or their lawyers.

If you have had conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is essential 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 an ongoing dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to pay any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as historic as opposed to ongoing.

All being well we will complete our sale of a £375000 apartment in Danescourt next Wednesday . The freeholder has quoted £324 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and previous years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge an administration fee for a flat conveyance in Danescourt?

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

• Answering pre-contract enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in Danescourt
• 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 conveyancer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Danescourt leasehold premises is £350. For Danescourt 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.

Danescourt Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Questions you should consider before buying

In the main the cost for major works are not incorporated into the service charges, although some managing agents in Danescourt obliged leasehold owners to pay into a sinking fund and this is used to offset against major works. You will want to discover as much as possible regarding the company managing the building as they can either make life much easier or uncomfortable. Being a leasehold owner you are often in the clutches of the managing agents both financially and when it comes to practical issues such as the upkeep of the common parts. Enquire of other tenants if they are happy with them. On a final note, be sure you know the dates that you are obliged pay the maintenance charge to the managing agents and specifically what you get for your money. Make sure you enquire if there are any onerous prohibitions in the lease. By way of example plenty of leases prohibit pets being allowed in in a block in Danescourt. If you like the apartmentin Danescourt yet your dog is not allowed to make the move with you then you have a very hard determination.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Danescourt