Halifax leasehold conveyancing Example Support Desk Enquiries
I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Halifax. Before I get started I would like to find out the remaining lease term.
If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and 99.9% are in Halifax - then the leasehold title will always include the basic details 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 recently realised that I have 68 years unexpired on my flat in Halifax. I now wish to get lease extension but my freeholder is absent. What options are available to me?
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 enable the lease to be lengthened by the Court. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you have made all reasonable attempts to track down the lessor. In some cases an enquiry agent would be helpful to carry out a search and prepare an expert document to be used as proof that the freeholder can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a solicitor in relation to investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court covering Halifax.
I’m about to sell my ground floor flat in Halifax.Conveyancing has not commenced but I have just had a half-yearly maintenance charge demand – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?
The sensible thing to do is 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 management companies 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. This will smooth the conveyancing process.
I work for a reputable estate agent office in Halifax where we have witnessed a number of flat sales derailed due to short leases. I have received inconsistent advice from local Halifax conveyancing firms. Can you confirm whether the vendor of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?
As long as the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the buyer need not have 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 at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.
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 buyer.
We expect to complete our sale of a £225000 apartment in Halifax in seven days. The landlords agents has quoted £420 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and 3 years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in Halifax?
For most leasehold sales in Halifax conveyancing will involve, queries regarding the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :
- Completing pre-exchange enquiries
- Where consent is required before sale in Halifax
- Supplying insurance information
- Deeds of covenant upon sale
- Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale
Halifax Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Questions you should consider Prior to Purchasing
-
It would be wise to discover as much as possible about the managing agents as they can either make life much easier or problematic. Being a leasehold owner you will be in the clutches of the managing agents from a financial perspective and when it comes to day to day issues such as the upkeep of the communal areas. Ask other tenants what they think of them. Finally, be sure you discover the dates that you are obliged pay the maintenance charge to the relevant party and precisely what you get for your money.
Most Halifax leasehold flats will be liable to pay a service charge for maintenance of the block set by the landlord. If you buy the apartment you will have to meet this liability, usually periodically during the year. This may vary from two or three hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for blocks with lifts and large communal grounds. There will also be a ground rent for you to pay yearly, this is usually not a exorbitant amount, say around £50-£100 but you need to check as on occasion it can be surprisingly expensive.
The prefered form of lease structure is if the freehold interest is owned by the leaseholders. In this scenario the lessees enjoy control and even though a managing agent is often retained if it is larger than a house conversion, the managing agent acts for the leaseholders themselves.
Other Topics