I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Didsbury. Before I get started I would like to find out the unexpired term of the lease.

If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and most are in Didsbury - 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.

Expecting to exchange soon on a basement flat in Didsbury. Conveyancing lawyers have said that they will have a report out to me next week. What should I be looking out for?

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

• You should receive a copy of the lease

Does the lease require carpeting throughout thus preventing wood flooring?

Ground rent - how much and when you need to pay, and also know whether this is subject to change

An explanation as to the provision in the lease to pay service charges - with regard to both the building, and the more general rights a leaseholder has

Whether your lease has a provision for a sinking fund?

The landlord’s obligations to repair and maintain the building. It is important that you know who is responsible for the repair and maintenance of every part of the building

Responsibility for repairing the window frames For a comprehensive list of information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Didsbury please ask your lawyer in ahead of your conveyancing in Didsbury

I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that appears to tick a lot of boxes, at a great price which is making it more attractive. I have just discovered that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are particular concerns buying a house with a leasehold title in Didsbury. Conveyancing solicitors have are soon to be appointed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Didsbury are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor used to dealing with such properties who can help the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are purchasing in Didsbury in which case you should be shopping around for a Didsbury conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they have experience in advising on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the unexpired lease term. Being a leaseholder you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions for example requiring the landlord’sconsent to conduct changes to the property. You may also be required to pay a contribution towards the maintenance of the estate where the house is part of an estate. Your solicitor should report to you on the legal implications.

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Didsbury with the aim of saving time on the sale process?

• Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Didsbury can be bypassed if you instruct lawyers the minute your agents start marketing the property and ask them to put together the leasehold information needed by the purchasers’ conveyancers.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s consent? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Didsbury leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or addition of wooden flooring calls for a licence from the Landlord consenting to such alterations. Where you dont have the paperwork to hand do not communicate with the landlord without checking with your solicitor first.

A minority of Didsbury leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, it would be prudent to notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand financial (bank) and professional references. Any 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 you have had any disputes with your landlord or managing agents it is essential that these are resolved before the property is marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be warry about purchasing a property where there is a current dispute. You may have to bite the bullet and discharge 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 ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to reveal the dispute as over as opposed to ongoing.

You may think that you are aware of the number of years left on your lease but you should double-check via your solicitors. A buyer’s conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the lease term is below 75 years. It is therefore essential at an as soon as possible that you identify whether the lease requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

If all goes to plan we aim to complete the sale of our £200000 apartment in Didsbury next week. The managing agents has quoted £312 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and previous years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge an administration fee for a flat conveyance in Didsbury?

For most leasehold sales in Didsbury 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 pre-contract enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in Didsbury
• 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 Didsbury leasehold premises is £350. For Didsbury 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 obliged to provide answers.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Didsbury - Examples of Questions you should ask Prior to Purchasing

The majority of Didsbury leasehold flats will incur a service bill for maintenance of the block invoiced on behalf of the freeholder. If you purchase the flat you will have to pay this amount, usually periodically accross the year. This can vary from a couple of hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for blocks with lifts and large communal grounds. In all probability there will be a rentcharge for you to pay yearly, this is usually not a significant figure, say approximately £50-£100 but you should to enquire as occasionally it could be prohibitively expensive. The answer will be useful as a) areas can cause problems in the block as the communal areas may start to deteriorate if repairs are not paid for b) if the tenants have an issue with the managing agents you will need to have all the details Please note that where the lease has less than eighty years it will impact the marketability of the flat. It is worth checking with your mortgage company that they are willing to lend given the lease term. A short lease means that you will most likely have to extend the lease at some point and it is worth discovering how much this would cost. For most Didsburylease extensions you would be be obliged to have been the owner of the residence for 24 months in order to be legally able to carry out a lease extension.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Didsbury