I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Farnham Common. Before I set the wheels in motion I require certainty as to the unexpired term of the lease.

Assuming the lease is recorded at the land registry - and 99.9% are in Farnham Common - 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 hoping to exchange soon on a garden flat in Farnham Common. Conveyancing lawyers inform me that they will have a report out to me within the next couple of days. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

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

• You should receive a copy of the lease

I am looking at a couple of apartments in Farnham Common both have approximately 50 years unexpired on the lease term. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

There is no doubt about it. A leasehold flat in Farnham Common is a deteriorating asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The nearer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it adversely affects the salability of the premises. The majority of buyers and banks, leases with less than eighty 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 premises 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 a residence 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 Farnham Common conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. More often than not it is possible to negotiate informally with the freeholder to extend 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.

I've recently bought a leasehold property in Farnham Common. Am I liable to pay 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. Strange as it may seem, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element 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).

Completion in due on our sale of a £225000 apartment in Farnham Common in just under a week. The freeholder has quoted £408 for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and 3 years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge an administration fee for a flat conveyance in Farnham Common?

Farnham Common conveyancing on leasehold apartments more often than not requires the purchaser’s lawyer sending questions for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to address these enquiries the majority will be content to do so. They may invoice a reasonable charge for responding to questions or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average fee for the paperwork that you are referring to is £350, in some situations it is above £800. The management information fee demanded by the landlord must be accompanied by a summary of entitlements and obligations in relation to administration charges, without which the invoice is not strictly payable. In reality one has no option but to pay whatever is requested of you should you wish to sell the property.

I invested in buying a split level flat in Farnham Common, conveyancing formalities finalised 1996. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Equivalent properties in Farnham Common with an extended lease are worth £225,000. The ground rent is £45 invoiced every year. The lease terminates on 21st October 2075

You have 54 years left to run we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £31,400 and £36,200 as well as legals.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to supply a more accurate figure without more detailed investigations. Do not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt other concerns that need to be considered and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward placing reliance on this information before getting professional advice.

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Lease Extensions in Farnham Common