Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Harborne:

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Top Five Questions relating to Harborne leasehold conveyancing

There are only 68 years remaining on my flat in Harborne. I now wish to get lease extension but my freeholder 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 an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be granted an extra 90 years by the magistrate. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you have done all that could be expected to locate the lessor. On the whole an enquiry agent would be helpful to try and locate and prepare an expert document which can be accepted by the court as evidence that the landlord is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a solicitor both on devolving into the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court covering Harborne.

I own a leasehold house in Harborne. Conveyancing and Barnsley Building Society mortgage went though with no issue. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1994. The conveyancing solicitor in Harborne who acted for me is not around.Any advice?

The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to make sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is indeed the new freeholder. You do not need to instruct a Harborne conveyancing lawyer to do this as it can be done on-line for less than a fiver. You should note that in any event, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I work for a busy estate agency in Harborne where we see a few flat sales jeopardised as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given contradictory information from local Harborne conveyancing firms. Could you clarify whether the owner of a flat can start the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

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 needs to be completed before, or at the same time as completion of the sale.

An alternative approach is 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 purchaser.

What advice can you give us when it comes to finding a Harborne conveyancing firm to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

If you are instructing a property lawyer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Harborne conveyancing firm) it is essential that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We advise that you make enquires with two or three firms including non Harborne conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be useful:

  • What volume of lease extensions have they carried out in Harborne in the last twenty four months?
  • What are the legal fees for lease extension conveyancing?

    • Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Harborne with the aim of expediting the sale process?

    • A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Harborne can be bypassed where you appoint lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and ask them to collate the leasehold documentation needed by the purchasers’ representatives.
    • Many freeholders or Management Companies in Harborne charge for supplying management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should find out the fee that they propose to charge. The management information sought on or before finding a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The typical amount of time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most common cause of frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Harborne.
  • In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s approval? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Harborne state that internal structural changes or addition of wooden flooring necessitate a licence from the Landlord acquiescing to such works. Where you fail to have the approvals in place you should not communicate with the landlord without checking with your conveyancer in advance.
  • A minority of Harborne leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, it would be prudent to place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is financially capable of paying the yearly service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their lawyers.
  • If you hold a share in a the freehold, you should make sure that you have the original share document. Organising a duplicate share certificate can be a lengthy process and delays many a Harborne home move. Where a reissued share certificate is required, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (where relevant) for this sooner rather than later.

    • Harborne Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Sample of Queries Prior to buying

      This question is useful as a) areas may cause problems in the building as the common areas may start to deteriorate where services remain unpaid b) if the tenants have an issue with the managing agents you will need to know about it How long is the Lease? It would be sensible to find out if there is anything that is prohibited in the lease. For example it is fairly common in Harborne leases that pets are not allowed in in a block in Harborne. If you love the apartmentin Harborne but your cat can’t move with you then you will be presented with a hard compromise.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Harborne