Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Godmanchester:

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When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Godmanchester, you will need to instruct a conveyancing solicitor with leasehold experience. Whether your mortgage company is to be Lloyds, Birmingham Midshires or Nationwide make sure you find a lawyer on their panel. Feel free to use our search tool

Sample questions relating to Godmanchester leasehold conveyancing

Due to exchange soon on a ground floor flat in Godmanchester. Conveyancing solicitors have said that they are sending me a report within the next couple of days. What should I be looking out for?

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

  • You should be sent a copy of the lease
  • Defining your rights in respect of the communal areas in the block.For instance, does the lease include a right of way over an accessway or hallways?
  • Does the lease prevent you from letting out the flat, or working from home
  • An explanation as to the provision in the lease to pay service charges - with regard to both the building, and the more general rights a leaseholder has
  • Repair and maintenance of the flat
  • 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 breach a clause of their lease? For a comprehensive list of information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Godmanchester please ask your conveyancer in ahead of your conveyancing in Godmanchester

    • I have just appointed agents to market my garden apartment in Godmanchester.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just had a yearly service charge invoice – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

    It best that you clear the invoice as normal because all ground rent and service charges will be apportioned on completion, so you will be reimbursed by the buyer for the period running from after the completion date to the next payment date. Most management companies will not acknowledge the buyer unless the service charges have been paid and are up to date so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

    I today plan to offer on a house that appears to tick a lot of boxes, at a great figure which is making it more attractive. I have subsequently discovered that the title is leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are issues buying a house with a leasehold title in Godmanchester. Conveyancing advisers have are soon to be instructed. Will they explain the issues?

    The majority of houses in Godmanchester are freehold and not leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local solicitor used to dealing with such properties who can help the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are purchasing in Godmanchester so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Godmanchester conveyancing practitioner and check that they are used to advising on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the unexpired lease term. Being a tenant you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want to the property. The lease will likely included provisions for example requiring the landlord’spermission to conduct changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a service charge towards the maintenance of the communal areas where the house is located on an estate. Your conveyancer will report to you on the legal implications.

    Back In 2008, I bought a leasehold flat in Godmanchester. Conveyancing and Accord Mortgages Ltd mortgage went though with no issue. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1991. The conveyancing practitioner in Godmanchester who acted for me is not around.Do I pay?

    First make enquiries of HMLR to make sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is in fact the new freeholder. You do not need to instruct a Godmanchester conveyancing firm to do this as it can be done on-line for less than a fiver. You should note that regardless, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

    Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Godmanchester from the point of view of saving time on the sale process?

    • A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Godmanchester can be avoided where you instruct lawyers as soon as you market your property and ask them to collate the leasehold information needed by the purchasers’ conveyancers.
    • The majority freeholders or managing agents in Godmanchester levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the actual amount of the charges. The management information can be applied for as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. The average time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most frequent reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Godmanchester.
  • If you have carried out any alterations to the property would they have required Landlord’s permission? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Godmanchester state that internal structural alterations or installing wooden flooring require a licence issued by the Landlord approving such works. Where you fail to have the consents in place do not communicate with the landlord without contacting your lawyer first.
  • A minority of Godmanchester leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, it would be prudent to notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand financial (bank) and professional references. The bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is able to meet the annual 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 actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their lawyers.
  • If you have had conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are resolved before the property is put on the market. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where there is an ongoing dispute. You may have to bite the bullet and discharge any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as historic rather than ongoing.

    • I purchased a studio flat in Godmanchester, conveyancing was carried out half a dozen years ago. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Comparable properties in Godmanchester with an extended lease are worth £170,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £60 charged once a year. The lease terminates on 21st October 2087

    With only 63 years remaining on your lease we estimate the premium for your lease extension to be between £15,200 and £17,600 plus costs.

    The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed due diligence. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt other issues that need to be considered and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward based on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Godmanchester