Planning to complete next month on a leasehold property in Hilton. Conveyancing solicitors have said that they are sending me a report on Monday. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Hilton 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
• The total extent of the premises. This will be the property itself but may include a loft or basement if applicable.
• Defining your legal entitlements in relation to common areas in the block.For instance, does the lease permit a right of way over a path or staircase?
• Whether your lease has a provision for a reserve fund?
• Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your premises and do you know what it means in practice?
• Responsibility for repairing the window frames

I've found a house that seems to be perfect, at a great price which is making it all the more appealing. I have since found out that the title is leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are issues buying a house with a leasehold title in Hilton. Conveyancing solicitors have are soon to be instructed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Hilton are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor used to dealing with such properties who can help the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are purchasing in Hilton in which case you should be shopping around for a Hilton conveyancing practitioner and be sure that they are used to transacting on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. Being a tenant you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions such as obtaining the landlord’spermission to carry out alterations. It may be necessary to pay a maintenance charge towards the upkeep of the communal areas where the house is part of an estate. Your lawyer will appraise you on the various issues.

Last month I purchased a leasehold flat in Hilton. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to my ownership?

Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. However, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. It is an essential part 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 employed by a busy estate agency in Hilton where we see a few leasehold sales derailed due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received inconsistent advice from local Hilton conveyancing solicitors. Please can you shed some light as to whether the owner of a flat can commence 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 kick-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 sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.

An alternative approach is 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.

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Hilton from the perspective of saving time on the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Hilton can be avoided if you appoint lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold documentation needed by the purchasers’ solicitors.
• Many freeholders or managing agents in Hilton levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should find out the actual amount of the charges. The management information can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus reducing delays. The typical amount of time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most frequent cause of frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Hilton.
• If you have carried out any alterations to the property would they have required Landlord’s permission? Have you, for example laid down wooden flooring? Most leases in Hilton state that internal structural alterations or addition of wooden flooring necessitate a licence from the Landlord approving such works. Where you fail to have the paperwork in place do not contact the landlord without contacting your lawyer first.
• A minority of Hilton leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this is the case, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is able to meet the annual 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 buyers or their lawyers.
• You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but you should verify this via your lawyers. A buyer’s lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to where the remaining number of years is below 75 years. It is therefore essential at an as soon as possible 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.

Hilton Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - A selection of Queries before buying

Best to be warned whether window replacement or some other significant cost is due shortly that will be shared by the leasehold owners and will dramatically impact the level of the maintenance costs or result in a specific payment.