Top Five Questions relating to Durham leasehold conveyancing
I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Durham. Before I get started I want to be sure as to the number of years remaining on the lease.
Assuming the lease is recorded at the land registry - and 99.9% are in Durham - 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 ground floor flat in Durham. Conveyancing solicitors assured me that they report fully within the next couple of days. What should I be looking out for?
The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Durham should include some of the following:
- Setting out your legal entitlements in relation to the communal areas in the block.E.G., does the lease permit a right of way over a path or hallways?
I own a leasehold house in Durham. Conveyancing and Aldermore mortgage organised. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1992. The conveyancing practitioner in Durham who acted for me is not around.What should I do?
First make enquiries of HMLR to make sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. There is no need to instruct a Durham conveyancing practitioner to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. You should note that in any event, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.
I am a negotiator for a long established estate agency in Durham where we have experienced a number of leasehold sales put at risk due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given contradictory information from local Durham conveyancing firms. Please can you confirm whether the owner of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?
Provided that the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the proposed purchaser can avoid having 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.
Alternatively, it may be possible to agree the lease extension with the freeholder 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.
What advice can you give us when it comes to choosing a Durham conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?
When appointing a conveyancer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Durham conveyancing firm) it is most important that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We suggested that you speak with several firms including non Durham conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be useful:
- If the firm is not ALEP accredited then why not?
I own a studio flat in Durham, conveyancing formalities finalised 5 years ago. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Corresponding properties in Durham with an extended lease are worth £229,000. The ground rent is £55 yearly. The lease ends on 21st October 2091
With 70 years left to run the likely cost is going to span between £12,400 and £14,200 as well as legals.
The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to advice on a more accurate figure in the absence of comprehensive investigations. Do not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt other issues that need to be taken into account and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action based on this information without first getting professional advice.
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