I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Hale Barns. Before I get started I want to be sure as to the remaining lease term.

Assuming the lease is recorded at the land registry - and almost all are in Hale Barns - 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.

There are only Sixty One years remaining on my flat in Hale Barns. I am keen to extend my lease but my freeholder is absent. What are my options?

On the basis that you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be extended by the Court. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you have made all reasonable attempts to track down the freeholder. On the whole a specialist should be helpful to try and locate and to produce a report which can be used as evidence that the landlord can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a conveyancer both on investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Hale Barns.

Planning to exchange soon on a basement flat in Hale Barns. Conveyancing lawyers assured me that they will have a report out to me tomorrow. What should I be looking out for?

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

• The length of the lease term You should be advised as what happens when the lease expires, and informed of the importance of not letting the lease term falling below eighty years

I am a negotiator for a busy estate agent office in Hale Barns where we have witnessed a number of leasehold sales put at risk due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received contradictory information from local Hale Barns conveyancing firms. Could you shed some light as to whether the vendor of a flat can instigate 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 start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the buyer can avoid having to sit tight for 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 simultaneously with completion of the sale.

Alternatively, it may be possible 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.

What makes a Hale Barns lease defective?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Hale Barns. All leases are unique and drafting errors can sometimes mean that certain clauses are missing. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• A provision to repair to or maintain elements of the property
• Insurance obligations
• 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

You will encounter difficulties when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Yorkshire Building Society, Bank of Scotland, and Platform Home Loans Ltd all have very detailed conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to grant the mortgage, obliging the purchaser to withdraw.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Hale Barns - A selection of Questions you should ask before buying

How many years remain on the lease? Who manages the building? The best form of lease structure is where the freehold reversion is owned by the leaseholders. In this arrangement the lessees have being in charge if their destiny and although a managing agent is often employed if it is bigger than a house conversion, the managing agent retained by the leaseholders.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Hale Barns