I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Ewloe. Before diving in I would like to find out the unexpired term of the lease.

Assuming the lease is recorded at the land registry - and 99.9% are in Ewloe - 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.

I only have Seventy years left on my lease in Ewloe. I now want to extend my lease but my landlord is can not be found. What should I do?

If you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be granted an extra 90 years by the Court. However, you will be required to prove that you have done all that could be expected to locate the lessor. In some cases a specialist may be helpful to try and locate and prepare a report to be used as evidence that the landlord is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a conveyancer both on devolving into the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Ewloe.

I own a leasehold flat in Ewloe. Conveyancing and The Mortgage Works mortgage organised. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1993. The conveyancing practitioner in Ewloe who previously acted has long since retired.Any advice?

The first thing you should do is make enquiries of the Land Registry to be sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Ewloe conveyancing firm to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. Rest assured that regardless, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I work for a busy estate agent office in Ewloe where we see a few flat sales derailed as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received conflicting advice from local Ewloe conveyancing firms. Could you confirm whether the seller of a flat can instigate 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 start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the buyer 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 disposal of the property.

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 buyer.

Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on the disposal of our £500000 flat in Ewloe in six days. The freeholder has quoted £360 for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and previous years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Ewloe?

Ewloe conveyancing on leasehold apartments normally requires the purchaser’s solicitor submitting questions for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is not legally bound to address such questions the majority will be content to assist. They are entitled invoice a reasonable administration fee for answering questions or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average costs for the paperwork that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some situations it exceeds £800. The management information fee levied by the landlord must be sent together with a synopsis of rights and obligations in relation to administration fees, otherwise the charge is technically not due. In reality one has no option but to pay whatever is requested of you if you want to exchange contracts with the buyer.

Ewloe Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Queries before buying

The prefered form of lease structure is a share of the freehold. In this arrangement the lessees enjoy being in charge if their destiny and notwithstanding that a managing agent is often employed if it is larger than a house conversion, the managing agent is directed by the tenants. Please inform me if there are any major works on the horizon that could add a premium to the service costs? It would be prudent to find out as much as possible about the managing agents as they can either make your life much simpler or much more difficult. As the proprietor of a leasehold property you are frequently in the clutches of the managing agents both financially and when it comes to practical issues such as the cleanliness of the communal areas. Don't be afraid to ask prospective neighbours whether they are happy with their management. In conclusion, be sure you know the dates that you are obliged pay the maintenance charge to the relevant party and precisely how they are spending that money.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Ewloe