Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Hartford:

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While any conveyancing practice can theoretically deal with your leasehold conveyancing in Hartford, your mortgage provider may unwilling to work with them if the firm are not on their list of approved solicitors for conveyancing

Frequently asked questions relating to Hartford leasehold conveyancing

I have recently realised that I have 72 years left on my flat in Hartford. I am keen to extend my lease but my freeholder is missing. What should I do?

On the basis that you qualify, 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 granted an extra 90 years by the Court. You will be obliged 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 which can be accepted by the court as proof that the freeholder can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a property lawyer in relation to investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Hartford.

Last month I purchased a leasehold house in Hartford. Do I have any liability for service charges relating to a period prior to completion of my purchase?

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. A critical element of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to ensure 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 long established estate agency in Hartford where we have witnessed a few leasehold sales derailed as a result of short leases. I have received inconsistent advice from local Hartford conveyancing solicitors. Please can you shed some light as to whether the owner of a flat can start the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

As long as 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. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser can avoid having to wait 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed before, 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 buyer.

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

If you are instructing a solicitor for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Hartford conveyancing firm) it is most important that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We recommend that you speak with several firms including non Hartford conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions could be helpful:

  • How familiar is the practice with lease extension legislation?
  • What are the costs for lease extension conveyancing?

    • Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Hartford from the perspective of saving time on the sale process?

    • A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Hartford can be bypassed where you appoint lawyers as soon as you market your property and request that they start to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers conveyancers.
    • The majority freeholders or Management Companies in Hartford charge for supplying management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the fee that they propose to charge. The management information can be applied for as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. The typical amount of time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most common cause of frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Hartford.
  • In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s consent? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Most leases in Hartford state that internal structural changes or addition of wooden flooring calls for a licence issued by the Landlord approving such alterations. Where you dont have the consents in place do not contact the landlord without contacting your conveyancer before hand.
  • If there is a history of any disputes with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are settled prior to the flat being marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be nervous about purchasing a flat where there is an ongoing dispute. You may need to swallow your pride and discharge any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to reveal the dispute as over rather than ongoing.
  • If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should ensure that you have the original share certificate. Arranging a re-issued share certificate can be a lengthy process and slows down many a Hartford home move. Where a duplicate share certificate is needed, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (if relevant) for this at the earliest opportunity.

    • Hartford Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Questions you should consider before Purchasing

      On the whole the outlay for major works tend not to be included within service charges, although there some managing agents in Hartford obliged leaseholders to contribute towards a sinking fund and this is used to offset against major repairs or maintenance. Please inform me if there are any major works anticipated that will likely increase the service fees? The prefered form of lease structure is if the freehold title is in the ownership of the leaseholders. In this scenario the leaseholders have being in charge if their destiny and although a managing agent is frequently retained if the building is larger than a house conversion, the managing agent is directed by the tenants.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Hartford