Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Great Linford. Before diving in I would like to find out the remaining lease term.

If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and almost all are in Great Linford - then the leasehold title will always include the short particulars 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 have just started marketing my basement flat in Great Linford.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just had a half-yearly service charge invoice – what should I do?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should pay the service charge 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 managing agents will not acknowledge the buyer until 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. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold house in Great Linford. Conveyancing and Halifax mortgage went though with no issue. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the freehold. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1994. The conveyancing solicitor in Great Linford who previously acted has long since retired.Any advice?

The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to be sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is indeed the new freeholder. It is not necessary to instruct a Great Linford conveyancing practitioner to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for a few pound. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

Last month I purchased a leasehold house in Great Linford. 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 owner 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 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 busy estate agency in Great Linford where we have witnessed a number of flat sales put at risk due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received contradictory information from local Great Linford conveyancing firms. Can you confirm whether the vendor of a flat can initiate the lease extension process 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 start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser 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 before, 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 buyer.

Great Linford Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Questions you should consider before Purchasing

The best form of lease arrangement is a share of the freehold. In this scenario the tenants enjoy being in charge if their destiny and although a managing agent is usually employed where it is larger than a house conversion, the managing agent acts for the leaseholders themselves. Does this lease have more than 80 years left? It would be wise to discover if there are any onerous restrictions in the lease. For example some leases prohibit pets being permitted in in a block in Great Linford. If you like the propertyin Great Linford however your dog can’t move with you then you will be faced difficult determination.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Great Linford