Experts for Leasehold Conveyancing in Hanham

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Leasehold conveyancing in Hanham is more complex than freehold. Your home move will be smoother where you choose a lawyer with a wealth of experience of leasehold conveyancing in Hanham and across next step up in loc. The lawyers we recommend have been approved by your lender so use our search tool to check.

Common questions relating to Hanham leasehold conveyancing

Harry (my fiance) and I may need to let out our Hanham basement flat temporarily due to a career opportunity. We instructed a Hanham conveyancing practice in 2004 but they have closed and we did not think at the time seek any guidance as to whether the lease permits subletting. How do we find out?

Notwithstanding that your last Hanham conveyancing lawyer is not available you can review your lease to check if it allows you to sublet the premises. The accepted inference is that if the lease is non-specific, subletting is allowed. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you must obtain consent from your landlord or some other party in advance of subletting. The net result is you not allowed to sublet in the absence of prior permission. Such consent must not not be unreasonably withheld. If your lease does not allow you to sublet you will need to ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

I have recently realised that I have Fifty years left on my flat in Hanham. I now want to extend my lease but my landlord is can not be found. 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 apply to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be extended by the Court. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you have made all reasonable attempts to find the freeholder. On the whole a specialist would be useful to conduct investigations and to produce an expert document which can be accepted by the court as evidence that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a solicitor in relation to investigating the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Hanham.

Planning to complete next month on a basement flat in Hanham. Conveyancing solicitors assured me that they will have a report out to me within the next couple of days. What should I be looking out for?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Hanham should include some of the following:

  • The unexpired lease term You should be advised as what happens when the lease ends, and informed of the importance of the 80 year mark
  • Setting out your legal entitlements in respect of the communal areas in the building.For example, does the lease permit a right of way over a path or staircase?
  • Does the lease prohibit wood flooring?
  • Whether the lease restricts you from letting out the flat, or having a home office for business
  • You should have a good understanding of the insurance provisions
  • Changes to the flat (alterations and additions)
  • Responsibility for repairing the window frames For a comprehensive list of information to be included in your report on your leasehold property in Hanham please ask your solicitor in ahead of your conveyancing in Hanham

    • I have just started marketing my garden apartment in Hanham.Conveyancing has not commenced but I have just received a yearly service charge demand – Do I pay up?

    The sensible thing to do is clear 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 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.

    Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Hanham from the perspective of expediting the sale process?

    • Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Hanham can be avoided where you appoint lawyers the minute you market your property and request that they start to put together the leasehold documentation needed by the purchasers’ representatives.
    • Many freeholders or managing agents in Hanham levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack can be applied for as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most usual cause of frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Hanham.
  • If you have had conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are resolved prior to the flat being put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where there is an ongoing dispute. You may have to bite the bullet and pay any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to present the dispute as historic as opposed to unsettled.
  • If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should make sure that you are holding the original share certificate. Arranging a re-issued share certificate is often a time consuming formality and delays many a Hanham home move. If a new share certificate is required, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (where applicable) for this at the earliest opportunity.
  • You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but it would be advisable verify this via your lawyers. A buyer’s conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to where the lease term is below 80 years. In the circumstances it is important at an early stage that you identify whether the lease for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

    • I own a split level flat in Hanham, conveyancing having been completed 8 years ago. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Similar flats in Hanham with over 90 years remaining are worth £200,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £55 charged once a year. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2101

    You have 78 years remaining on your lease the likely cost is going to be between £10,500 and £12,000 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

    The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to advice on a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed investigations. Do not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be other issues that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action based on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Hanham