I've found a house that seems to be perfect, at a great price which is making it more attractive. I have just discovered that the title is leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are issues purchasing a leasehold house in Fenny Stratford. Conveyancing lawyers have are soon to be appointed. Will they explain the issues?

Most houses in Fenny Stratford are freehold rather than leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer used to dealing with such properties who can help the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are buying in Fenny Stratford in which case you should be shopping around for a Fenny Stratford conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they have experience in advising on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the number of years remaining. Being a lessee you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions for example requiring the landlord’spermission to carry out changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a service charge towards the upkeep of the estate where the house is part of an estate. Your lawyer will appraise you on the various issues.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold flat in Fenny Stratford. Conveyancing and Britannia mortgage organised. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1995. The conveyancing solicitor in Fenny Stratford who acted for me is not around.Do I pay?

First contact HMLR to make sure that this person is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. You do not need to instruct a Fenny Stratford conveyancing solicitor to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for £3. You should note that regardless, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I've recently bought a leasehold house in Fenny Stratford. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before my ownership?

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 long established estate agent office in Fenny Stratford where we have witnessed a number of flat sales jeopardised as a result of short leases. I have been given contradictory information from local Fenny Stratford conveyancing solicitors. Could you shed some light as to whether the vendor of a flat can initiate the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence 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 prior to, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

Alternatively, it may be possible 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 purchaser.

We expect to complete the disposal of our £ 375000 flat in Fenny Stratford on Thursday in a week. The management company has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and previous years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in Fenny Stratford?

Fenny Stratford conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes usually necessitates the buyer’s solicitor submitting questions for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to answer these enquiries the majority will be willing to do so. They may invoice a reasonable charge for responding to questions or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average costs for the paperwork that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some situations it is in excess of £800. The management information fee demanded by the landlord must be sent together with a summary of rights and obligations in respect of administration fees, without which the invoice is technically not due. In reality one has no choice but to pay whatever is demanded if you want to exchange contracts with the buyer.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Fenny Stratford - Sample of Questions you should consider Prior to Purchasing

Who manages the building?