Experts for Leasehold Conveyancing in Felinheli

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When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Felinheli, you will need to chose a conveyancing lawyer with leasehold experience. Whether your mortgage company is to be Santander, RBS or Nationwide make sure you find a lawyer on their approved list. Feel free to use our search tool

Frequently asked questions relating to Felinheli leasehold conveyancing

Expecting to sign contracts shortly on a basement flat in Felinheli. Conveyancing solicitors assured me that they report fully within the next couple of days. What should I be looking out for?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Felinheli should include some of the following:

  • Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, landlord
  • Are pets allowed in the flat?
  • 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
  • Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your property and do you know what it means in practice?
  • The landlord’s obligations to repair and maintain the building. It is important that you know who is responsible for the repair and maintenance of every part of the building
  • What options are open to you if a neighbour is in violation of a provision in their lease? For a comprehensive list of information to be included in your report on your leasehold property in Felinheli please enquire of your solicitor in advance of your conveyancing in Felinheli

    • My wife and I purchased a leasehold flat in Felinheli. Conveyancing and Norwich and Peterborough Building Society mortgage organised. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1992. The conveyancing solicitor in Felinheli who previously acted has long since retired.What should I do?

    The first thing you should do is make enquiries of the Land Registry to be sure that this person is indeed the new freeholder. You do not need to incur the fees of a Felinheli conveyancing lawyer to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. You should note that regardless, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

    I've recently bought a leasehold property in Felinheli. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to my ownership?

    In a situation 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. It is an essential part of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to be sure 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 work for a busy estate agent office in Felinheli where we see a few flat sales derailed as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Felinheli conveyancing firms. Please can you shed some light as to whether the seller of a flat can initiate the lease extension process for the buyer?

    Provided that 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. The benefit of this is that the buyer need not have to wait 2 years for a lease extension. 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.

    Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Felinheli from the point of view of expediting the sale process?

    • A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Felinheli can be bypassed if you instruct lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers conveyancers.
    • The majority landlords or managing agents in Felinheli charge for providing management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the actual amount of the charges. The management information sought on or before finding a buyer, thus reducing delays. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most usual reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Felinheli.
  • A minority of Felinheli leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, 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 service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their lawyers.
  • If there is a history of conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved prior to the flat being put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where a dispute is ongoing. You may need to swallow your pride and pay any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal particulars of the dispute to the buyers, but it is better to reveal the dispute as historic rather than ongoing.
  • You may think that you are aware of the number of years left on your lease but it would be wise to verify this via your lawyers. A purchaser's lawyer will not be happy to advise their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the lease term is under 80 years. In the circumstances it is essential at an as soon as possible that you identify whether the lease term for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

    • I own a leasehold flat in Felinheli, conveyancing having been completed in 2005. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Equivalent properties in Felinheli with an extended lease are worth £180,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £65 yearly. The lease finishes on 21st October 2097

    With just 71 years left to run the likely cost is going to span between £10,500 and £12,000 as well as legals.

    The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to provide a more accurate figure without more detailed investigations. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt additional issues that need to be considered and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward based on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Felinheli