Guaranteed fixed fees for Leasehold Conveyancing in Fairford

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When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Fairford, you will need to appoint a conveyancing lawyer with leasehold experience. Whether your lender is to be Halifax, Birmingham Midshires or NatWest make sure you find a lawyer on their approved list. Find a Fairford conveyancing lawyer with our search tool

Common questions relating to Fairford leasehold conveyancing

Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Fairford. Before diving in I require certainty as to the number of years remaining on the lease.

If the lease is registered - and almost all are in Fairford - then the leasehold title will always include the basic details 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 am intending to let out my leasehold flat in Fairford. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask her. Is permission from the freeholder required?

A lease governs relations between the freeholder and you the leaseholder; in particular, it will set out if subletting is prohibited, or permitted but only subject to certain conditions. The rule is that if the lease contains no specific ban or restriction, subletting is permitted. The majority of leases in Fairford do not prevent an absolute prevention of subletting – such a clause would undoubtedly devalue the property. In most cases there is simply a requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly sending a copy of the sublease.

Expecting to sign contracts shortly on a studio apartment in Fairford. Conveyancing lawyers have said that they will have a report out to me tomorrow. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Fairford should include some of the following:

  • You should be sent a copy of the lease
  • Does the lease require carpeting throughout thus preventing wood flooring?
  • Ground rent - how much and when you need to pay, and also know whether this will change in the future
  • Whether your lease has a provision for a reserve fund?
  • Repair and maintenance of the flat
  • I don't know whether the lease allows me to alter or improve anything in the flat - you should know whether it applies to all alterations or just structural alteration, and whether consent is required
  • Responsibility for repairing the window frames For a comprehensive list of information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Fairford please enquire of your conveyancer in advance of your conveyancing in Fairford

    • Last month I purchased a leasehold property in Fairford. Do I have any liability for service charges relating to a period prior to completion of my purchase?

    Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. However, 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 employed by a long established estate agency in Fairford where we see a number of flat sales put at risk as a result of short leases. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Fairford conveyancing solicitors. Please can you clarify whether the seller of a flat can commence the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

    As long as the seller has been the owner 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 buyer need not have to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or simultaneously with 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.

    Fairford Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Questions you should consider Prior to buying

      How many of the leaseholders are in arrears for their service charge payments? How many years remain on the lease? Is anyone aware of any major works in the near future that could add a premium to the maintenance charges?

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Fairford