Looking forward to complete next month on a basement flat in Dartmouth. Conveyancing solicitors have said that they report fully tomorrow. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

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

• You should receive a copy of the lease

I’m about to sell my ground floor flat in Dartmouth.Conveyancing has not commenced but I have just had a yearly service charge demand – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

The sensible thing to do is pay 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 am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that appears to tick a lot of boxes, at a reasonable price which is making it all the more appealing. I have since found out that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are issues purchasing a house with a leasehold title in Dartmouth. Conveyancing advisers have are about to be instructed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Dartmouth are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor used to dealing with such properties who can assist with the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are purchasing in Dartmouth in which case you should be shopping around for a Dartmouth conveyancing practitioner and be sure that they have experience in advising on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the number of years remaining. As a tenant you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions for example requiring the landlord’spermission to carry out changes to the property. You may also be required to pay a contribution towards the upkeep of the estate where the property is located on an estate. Your lawyer will appraise you on the various issues.

I work for a reputable estate agency in Dartmouth where we have experienced a few leasehold sales put at risk as a result of short leases. I have been given conflicting advice from local Dartmouth conveyancing firms. Can you shed some light as to whether the owner of a flat can initiate the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

As long as the seller has been the owner 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. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser need not have 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 disposal of the property.

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.

In relation to leasehold conveyancing in Dartmouth what are the most frequent lease problems?

Leasehold conveyancing in Dartmouth is not unique. All leases are unique and drafting errors can result in certain provisions are erroneous. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain elements of the premises
• A duty to insure the building
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

You will have a problem when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Birmingham Midshires, Norwich and Peterborough Building Society, and Godiva Mortgages Ltd all have very detailed requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is problematic they may refuse to provide security, forcing the purchaser to pull out.

I bought a 1 bedroom flat in Dartmouth, conveyancing having been completed 2000. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Similar properties in Dartmouth with an extended lease are worth £187,000. The ground rent is £65 yearly. The lease ceases on 21st October 2103

With only 78 years left to run we estimate the premium for your lease extension to range between £9,500 and £11,000 as well as legals.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to provide a more accurate figure in the absence of comprehensive investigations. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt other issues that need to be taken into account and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action placing reliance on this information before getting professional advice.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Dartmouth