Leasehold Conveyancing in Eaglescliffe - Get a Quote from the leasehold experts approved by your lender

Leasehold conveyancing in Eaglescliffe is more complex than freehold. Your home move will be smoother where you choose a lawyer with a wealth of experience of leasehold conveyancing in Eaglescliffe and throughout next step up in loc. The lawyers we recommend have been approved by your lender so use our search tool to check.

Examples of recent questions relating to leasehold conveyancing in Eaglescliffe

Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my 2 bed flat in Eaglescliffe.Conveyancing has not commenced but I have just had a half-yearly service charge invoice – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

It best that you clear 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 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 today plan to offer on a house that appears to tick a lot of boxes, at a reasonable price which is making it more attractive. I have just discovered that the title is leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are particular concerns buying a leasehold house in Eaglescliffe. Conveyancing solicitors have are soon to be appointed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Eaglescliffe are freehold rather than leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer used to dealing with such properties who can help the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are purchasing in Eaglescliffe so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Eaglescliffe conveyancing solicitor and check that they have experience in advising on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. Being a lessee you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions for example requiring the freeholder’spermission to conduct alterations. You may also be required to pay a maintenance charge towards the upkeep of the communal areas where the property is located on an estate. Your lawyer should report to you on the legal implications.

I am a negotiator for a busy estate agent office in Eaglescliffe 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 Eaglescliffe conveyancing solicitors. Please can you shed some light as to whether the seller of a flat can start the lease extension formalities 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 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 wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done prior to, or at the same time as completion of the sale.

An alternative approach is 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 Eaglescliffe conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

When appointing a property lawyer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Eaglescliffe conveyancing practice) it is essential that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We advise that you speak with two or three firms including non Eaglescliffe conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions could be useful:

  • How many lease extensions has the firm carried out in Eaglescliffe in the last year?
  • What are the charges for lease extension conveyancing?

  • Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Eaglescliffe with the intention of expediting the sale process?

    • Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Eaglescliffe can be bypassed if you appoint lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and request that they start to collate the leasehold information needed by the purchasers’ conveyancers.
    • The majority landlords or Management Companies in Eaglescliffe charge for supplying management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should discover the actual amount of the charges. The management information sought as soon as you have a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The typical amount of time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most frequent reason for frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Eaglescliffe.
  • A minority of Eaglescliffe leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is financially capable of paying 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 actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their solicitors.
  • If you hold a share in a the Management Company, you should make sure that you have the original share document. Organising a new share certificate can be a time consuming process and delays many a Eaglescliffe conveyancing transaction. If a reissued share is necessary, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (if relevant) for this at the earliest opportunity.
  • You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but it would be wise to verify this via your lawyers. A buyer’s lawyer will not be happy to advise 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 term for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

  • Eaglescliffe Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - A selection of Queries before buying

      You will want to discover as much as possible regarding the company managing the building as they will impact your use and enjoyment of the property. As the owner of a leasehold property you are often at the mercy of the managing agents from a financial perspective and when it comes to daily matters such as the cleanliness of the common parts. Don't be shy to ask prospective neighbours what they think of their management. Finally, find out the dates that you are obliged pay the service charge to the managing agents and specifically how they are spending that money. Is there a share of the freehold? Where a Eaglescliffe lease has no more than 80 years it will have adverse implications on the marketability of the flat. It is worth checking with your bank that they are happy with the length of the lease. A short lease means that you will almost definitely need a lease extension sooner rather than later and you need to have some idea of how much this will be. For most Eaglescliffelease extensions you will need to own the residence for two years in order to be legally able to exercise a lease extension.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Eaglescliffe