I today plan to offer on a house that seems to be perfect, at a reasonable figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have subsequently found out that the title is leasehold as opposed to freehold. I would have thought that there are issues buying a leasehold house in Gunnislake. Conveyancing solicitors have not yet been appointed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Gunnislake are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor used to dealing with such properties who can assist with the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are buying in Gunnislake in which case you should be shopping around for a Gunnislake conveyancing practitioner and be sure that they are used to transacting on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the unexpired lease term. Being a leaseholder you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease comes with conditions such as obtaining the freeholder’sconsent to conduct changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a service charge towards the upkeep of the communal areas where the property is part of an estate. Your solicitor will appraise you on the various issues.

I've recently bought a leasehold house in Gunnislake. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before 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 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 am a negotiator for a busy estate agency in Gunnislake where we see a number of flat sales derailed due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Gunnislake conveyancing firms. Can you shed some light as to whether the vendor of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

Provided that the seller has been the owner 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. This means that the proposed purchaser can avoid having to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or simultaneously with 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.

If all goes to plan we aim to complete the disposal of our £200000 flat in Gunnislake next Thursday . The managing agents has quoted £372 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and 3 years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge an administration fee for a flat conveyance in Gunnislake?

Gunnislake conveyancing on leasehold apartments more often than not requires the purchaser’s solicitor sending questions for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is not legally bound to respond to these enquiries the majority will be willing to assist. They may levy a reasonable charge for answering enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average fee for the information that you are referring to is £350, in some situations it is in excess of £800. The management information fee invoiced by the landlord must be accompanied by a synopsis of entitlements and obligations in relation to administration fees, otherwise the invoice is technically not due. Reality however dictates that you have little choice but to pay whatever is demanded if you want to sell the property.

When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Gunnislake what are the most frequent lease defects?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Gunnislake. Most leases are individual and drafting errors can result in certain clauses are erroneous. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the building
• A duty to insure the building
• A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

A defective lease will likely cause problems when trying to sell a property primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Birmingham Midshires, The Mortgage Works, and Alliance & Leicester all have very detailed conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is problematic they may refuse to grant the mortgage, forcing the purchaser to withdraw.

Gunnislake Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - A selection of Queries before buying

Best to be warned if fixing the lift or some other major work is pending to be shared by the tenants and will dramatically impact the level of the maintenance fees or result in a one time payment. This question is useful as a) areas could result in problems for the building as the communal areas may start to deteriorate where services are not paid for b) if the tenants have a dispute with the managing agents you will wish to know about it You will want to find out as much as you can concerning the managing agents as they can either make your life much simpler or much more difficult. Being a leasehold owner you are often at the mercy of the managing agents from a financial perspective and when it comes to every day matters like the upkeep of the communal areas. Ask other people what they think of them. Finally, investigate as to the dates that you are obliged pay the maintenance charge to the relevant party and specifically what it includes.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Gunnislake