I am hoping to exchange soon on a basement flat in Huntingdon. Conveyancing lawyers have said that they report fully on Monday. What should I be looking out for?

Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Huntingdon should include some of the following:

• The total extent of the premises. This will be the apartment itself but might include a roof space or cellar if appropriate.

Will you be prohibited or prevented from having pets in the property?

An explanation as to the provision in the lease to pay service charges - with regard to both the building, and the more general rights a leaseholder has

I don't know whether the lease allows me to alter or improve anything in the flat - you should know whether it applies to all alterations or just structural alteration, and whether consent is required

Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your property and do you know what it means in practice?

Responsibility for repairing the window frames

What options are open to you if a neighbour is in violation of a provision in their lease? For details of the information to be included in your report on your leasehold property in Huntingdon please enquire of your lawyer in advance of your conveyancing in Huntingdon

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a two flats in Huntingdon which have about fifty years remaining on the lease term. should I be concerned?

There is no doubt about it. A leasehold apartment in Huntingdon is a deteriorating asset as a result of the shortening lease. The closer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it adversely affects the value of the premises. For most buyers and lenders, leases with under 75 years become less and less attractive. On a more upbeat note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the premises for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of a residence with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Huntingdon conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. More often than not it is possible to negotiate informally with the freeholder to extend the lease They may agree to a smaller lump sum and an increase in the ground rent, but to shorter extension terms in return. You need to ensure that the agreed terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.

I've recently bought a leasehold property in Huntingdon. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

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. A critical element of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to be sure 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).

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Huntingdon from the perspective of saving time on the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Huntingdon can be reduced where you appoint lawyers as soon as you market your property and request that they start to collate the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers conveyancers.
• Many freeholders or managing agents in Huntingdon levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the actual amount of the charges. The management information can be applied for as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. The average time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most frequent reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Huntingdon.

In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s approval? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Huntingdon leases often stipulate that internal structural changes or installing wooden flooring calls for a licence issued by the Landlord consenting to such works. Where you fail to have the approvals in place you should not contact the landlord without checking with your solicitor first.

If there is a history of any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved before the property is put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be concerned about purchasing a property where there is an ongoing dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to discharge any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to completion of the sale. 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 particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to present the dispute as historic rather than ongoing.

If you have the benefit of shareholding in the Management Company, you should make sure that you are holding the original share certificate. Arranging a re-issued share certificate can be a time consuming process and slows down many a Huntingdon home move. Where a duplicate share is necessary, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (if relevant) for this at the earliest opportunity.

Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on our sale of a £375000 apartment in Huntingdon next week. The freeholder has quoted £372 for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and previous years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in Huntingdon?

Huntingdon conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes nine out of ten times involves fees being invoiced by managing agents :

• Answering conveyancing due diligence enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in Huntingdon
• Supplying insurance information
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your lawyer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Huntingdon leasehold premises is £350. For Huntingdon conveyancing transactions it is customary for the seller to pay for these costs. The landlord or their agents are under no legal obligation to answer such questions most will be willing to do so - albeit often at exorbitant prices where the fees bear little relation to the work involved. Unfortunately there is no law that requires fixed charges for administrative tasks. Neither is there any legal time frame by which they are obliged to supply the information.

Huntingdon Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Queries Prior to Purchasing

Plenty Huntingdon leasehold flats will have a service bill for the upkeep of the block set by the management company. Where you buy the flat you will have to meet this contribution, usually in instalments throughout the year. This can be anything from several hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for bigger purpose-built buildings. There will also be a ground rent for you to pay annual, ordinarily this is not a large figure, say around £50-£100 but you need to check it because occasionally it could be many hundreds of pounds. How is the lease structured? What is the the remaining lease term?

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Huntingdon