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While any conveyancing practice can theoretically deal with your leasehold conveyancing in Downend, your mortgage provider may unwilling to work with them if the firm are not on their list of approved solicitors for conveyancing

Sample questions relating to Downend leasehold conveyancing

I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Downend. Before I set the wheels in motion I require certainty as to the remaining lease term.

Assuming the lease is registered - and most are in Downend - 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.

My husband and I may need to rent out our Downend basement flat temporarily due to taking a sabbatical. We instructed a Downend conveyancing firm in 2003 but they have closed and we did not have the foresight to get any advice as to whether the lease prohibits the subletting of the flat. How do we find out?

A small minority of properties in Downend do contain a provision to say that subletting is only permitted with prior consent from the landlord. The landlord is not entitled to unreasonably refuse 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 own a leasehold house in Downend. Conveyancing and Halifax mortgage organised. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the freehold. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1992. The conveyancing solicitor in Downend who previously acted has now retired.Any advice?

The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to be sure that this person is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. You do not need to incur the fees of a Downend conveyancing lawyer to do this as it can be done on-line for £3. 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 work for a long established estate agent office in Downend where we see a number of leasehold sales jeopardised due to short leases. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Downend conveyancing solicitors. Could you confirm whether the vendor of a flat can start the lease extension process for the buyer?

As long as the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the buyer need not have to sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or simultaneously with completion of the sale.

An alternative approach is 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.

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Downend with the aim of speeding up the sale process?

  • A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Downend can be reduced where you instruct lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and ask them to collate the leasehold documentation which will be required by the purchasers’ solicitors.
  • If you have carried out any alterations to the premises would they have required Landlord’s permission? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Downend leases often stipulate that internal structural changes or laying down wooden flooring necessitate a licence from the Landlord consenting to such alterations. Should you fail to have the paperwork in place do not communicate with the landlord without contacting your conveyancer in advance.
  • If you have had conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is essential that these are settled prior to the flat being put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be concerned about purchasing a flat where there is an ongoing dispute. You may need to swallow your pride and pay any arrears of service charge or resolve 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 particulars of the dispute to the buyers, but it is clearly preferable to present the dispute as over as opposed to ongoing.
  • If you hold a share in a the freehold, you should make sure that you have the original share certificate. Organising a replacement share certificate is often a lengthy process and delays many a Downend home move. If a duplicate share certificate is needed, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (where relevant) for this as soon as possible.
  • You may think that you are aware of the number of years left on your lease but you should verify this via your solicitors. A buyer’s lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to where the remaining number of years is below 80 years. It is therefore essential at an early stage that you consider whether the lease for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

    • I acquired a split level flat in Downend, conveyancing was carried out half a dozen years ago. How much will my lease extension cost? Equivalent flats in Downend with a long lease are worth £196,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £45 charged once a year. The lease runs out on 21st October 2073

    With only 53 years left to run we estimate the price of your lease extension to range between £33,300 and £38,400 as well as legals.

    The figure above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure in the absence of comprehensive investigations. You should not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt additional issues that need to be taken into account and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward based on this information without first getting professional advice.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Downend