I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a couple of flats in Elland which have in the region of fifty years remaining on the leases. Do I need to be concerned?

There are no two ways about it. A leasehold flat in Elland is a wasting asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The closer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it reduces the value of the premises. The majority of buyers and lenders, leases with under 75 years become less and less marketable. On a more upbeat note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the property for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of premises with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Elland conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. A more straightforward and quicker method of extending would be to contact your landlord directly and sound him out on the prospect of extending the lease They may agree to a smaller lump sum and an increase in the ground rent, but to shorter extension terms in return. You need to ensure that the agreed terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.

Last month I purchased a leasehold property in Elland. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. Strange as it may seem, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. It is an essential part of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to ensure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.

If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).

I am a negotiator for a long established estate agent office in Elland where we see a number of flat sales derailed due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given conflicting advice from local Elland conveyancing firms. Can you shed some light as to whether the seller 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 kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means 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 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 buyer.

Can you offer any advice when it comes to finding a Elland conveyancing firm to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

If you are instructing a conveyancer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Elland conveyancing practice) it is most important that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We suggested that you speak with several firms including non Elland conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions might be of use:

• If the firm is not ALEP accredited then why not?

We expect to complete the sale of our £125000 flat in Elland in just under a week. The management company has quoted £372 for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and 3 years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Elland?

Elland conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes often necessitates the purchaser’s solicitor submitting questions for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to address such questions the majority will be content to assist. They are at liberty invoice a reasonable charge for answering questions or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average fee for the paperwork that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some cases it is in excess of £800. The management information fee levied by the landlord must be accompanied by a synopsis of entitlements and obligations in respect of administration fees, otherwise the invoice is not strictly payable. In reality you have little option but to pay whatever is requested of you if you want to sell the property.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Elland - Examples of Questions you should ask before buying

You will want to discover as much as you can regarding the managing agents as they can either make life much simpler or problematic. As the owner of a leasehold property you will be at the mercy of the managing agents both financially and when it comes to daily issues such as the cleanliness of the common parts. Enquire of prospective neighbours if they are happy with their management. Finally, be sure you understand the dates that you are obliged pay the maintenance charge to the managing agents and specifically how they are spending the funds. The answer will be helpful as a) areas can result in problems for the building as the common areas may begin to deteriorate if repairs are not paid for b) if the tenants have an issue with the managing agents you will want to know about it Where a Elland lease has fewer than 80 years it will affect the value of the property. Check with your lender that they are willing to lend given the lease term. Leases with less than 80 years remaining means that you will most likely need a lease extension sooner rather than later and it is worth discovering what this will be. For most Ellandlease extensions you would be be obliged to have owned the residence for two years in order to be eligible to exercise a lease extension.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Elland