Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Heath:

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Examples of recent questions relating to leasehold conveyancing in Heath

I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Heath. Before diving in I would like to find out the number of years remaining on the lease.

If the lease is registered - and 99.9% are in Heath - 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.

My husband and I may need to let out our Heath ground floor flat temporarily due to a career opportunity. We used a Heath conveyancing practice in 2004 but they have closed and we did not have the foresight to get any advice as to whether the lease prohibits the subletting of the flat. How do we find out?

Even though your previous Heath conveyancing solicitor is no longer around you can check your lease to see if it allows you to sublet the property. The rule is that if the lease is silent, subletting is allowed. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you need to seek permission via your landlord or some other party prior to subletting. The net result is you not allowed to sublet in the absence of prior permission. Such consent must not not be unreasonably refused ore delayed. If your lease does not allow you to sublet you should ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only 72 years remaining on my lease in Heath. I now want to extend my lease but my landlord is absent. What are my options?

If 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. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you have made all reasonable attempts to find the landlord. On the whole an enquiry agent would be helpful to carry out a search and to produce an expert document to be used as evidence that the landlord is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a property lawyer in relation to proving the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Heath.

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a two maisonettes in Heath which have in the region of fifty years remaining on the leases. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

There are plenty of short leases in Heath. The lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the property for a prescribed time frame. As the lease shortens the value of the lease reduces and it becomes more costly to extend the lease. For this reason it is generally wise to increase the term of the lease. Sometimes it is difficult to sell a property with a short lease as mortgage lenders may be reluctant to lend money on properties of this type. Lease enfranchisement can be a protracted process. We advise that you get professional help from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this area

I am a negotiator for a reputable estate agent office in Heath where we have witnessed a number of flat sales derailed as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received contradictory information from local Heath conveyancing solicitors. Please can you shed some light as to whether the seller of a flat can instigate the lease extension process 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. This means that the proposed purchaser 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 prior to, or at the same time as completion of the sale.

Alternatively, it may be possible 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.

I purchased a studio flat in Heath, conveyancing formalities finalised half a dozen years ago. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Comparable properties in Heath with an extended lease are worth £166,000. The ground rent is £50 invoiced every year. The lease finishes on 21st October 2081

With 57 years left to run the likely cost is going to span between £22,800 and £26,400 as well as plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to advice on a more accurate figure without more comprehensive due diligence. You should not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional concerns that need to be considered and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward based on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.

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Lease Extensions in Heath