Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Horley:

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Horley leasehold conveyancing: Q and A’s

Planning to exchange soon on a studio apartment in Horley. Conveyancing solicitors assured me 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 Horley should include some of the following:

  • Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, freeholder
  • The physical extent of the premises. This will be the apartment itself but might include a loft or basement if applicable.
  • You should have a good understanding of the insurance provisions
  • 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
  • What you can do if a neighbour breach a clause of their lease?
  • What the implications are if you breach a clause of your lease? For details of the information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Horley please enquire of your lawyer in ahead of your conveyancing in Horley

    • Back In 2007, I bought a leasehold house in Horley. Conveyancing and Bank of Ireland mortgage organised. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1995. The conveyancing practitioner in Horley who acted for me is not around.What should I do?

    First contact HMLR to be sure that this person is in fact the new freeholder. You do not need to instruct a Horley conveyancing firm to do this as it can be done on-line for £3. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

    What are your top tips when it comes to finding a Horley conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?

    When appointing a conveyancer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Horley conveyancing firm) it is imperative that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We suggested that you make enquires with several firms including non Horley conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions could be useful:

    • How many lease extensions has the firm carried out in Horley in the last twenty four months?
  • What are the charges for lease extension conveyancing?

    • Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Horley from the perspective of speeding up the sale process?

    • A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Horley can be bypassed where you instruct lawyers the minute you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the purchasers’ lawyers.
    • The majority landlords or managing agents in Horley charge for supplying management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should discover the actual amount of the charges. The management pack sought as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. The typical amount of time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most frequent reason for frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Horley.
  • Some Horley leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this is the case, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers put in hand financial (bank) and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is financially capable of paying 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 purchasers or their solicitors.
  • If there is a history of any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are settled prior to the flat being marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be nervous about purchasing a property where a dispute is ongoing. 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 buyers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as historic as opposed to unresolved.
  • You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but it would be advisable verify this by asking your conveyancers. A purchaser's conveyancer will be unlikely to recommend their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the lease term is under 75 years. It is therefore essential at an early stage that you identify whether the lease requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

    • Completion in due on our sale of a £175000 garden flat in Horley on Friday in a week. The managing agents has quoted £312 for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and 3 years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Horley?

    Horley conveyancing on leasehold flats normally necessitates the purchaser’s conveyancer submitting questions for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to respond to these enquiries the majority will be content to do so. They are entitled invoice a reasonable administration fee for answering questions or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average costs for the paperwork that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some situations it is above £800. The administration charge demanded by the landlord must be accompanied by a synopsis of entitlements and obligations in relation to administration charges, without which the invoice is technically not due. In reality one has no option but to pay whatever is requested of you should you wish to complete the sale of your home.

    I invested in buying a 1 bedroom flat in Horley, conveyancing formalities finalised half a dozen years ago. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Equivalent properties in Horley with a long lease are worth £180,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £55 invoiced every year. The lease terminates on 21st October 2075

    With only 50 years left to run we estimate the premium for your lease extension to be between £33,300 and £38,400 as well as legals.

    The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure without more detailed due diligence. You should not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be additional concerns that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward placing reliance on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Horley