Looking forward to sign contracts shortly on a leasehold property in Hurst Green. Conveyancing lawyers assured me that they will have a report out to me next week. What should I be looking out for?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Hurst Green should include some of the following:

• You should be sent a copy of the lease

I have just started marketing my ground floor flat in Hurst Green.Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon but I have just had a quarterly service charge demand – Do I pay up?

The sensible thing to do is clear the invoice as normal because all ground rent and service charges will be apportioned on completion, so you will be reimbursed by the buyer for the period running from after the completion date to the next payment date. Most management companies will not acknowledge the buyer until the service charges have been paid and are up to date so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

Back In 2006, I bought a leasehold flat in Hurst Green. Conveyancing and Britannia mortgage are in place. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1994. The conveyancing practitioner in Hurst Green who previously acted has long since retired.Any advice?

First contact HMLR to make sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Hurst Green conveyancing lawyer to do this as it can be done on-line for less than a fiver. Rest assured that regardless, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I am employed by a long established estate agent office in Hurst Green where we have experienced a few leasehold sales jeopardised due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Hurst Green conveyancing firms. Can you shed some light as to whether the seller of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

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. This means that the proposed purchaser need not have to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

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 buyer.

In relation to leasehold conveyancing in Hurst Green what are the most frequent lease problems?

Leasehold conveyancing in Hurst Green is not unique. Most leases are unique and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain sections are not included. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• A provision to repair to or maintain parts of the premises
• Insurance obligations
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

A defective lease can cause problems when trying to sell a property primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Santander, Norwich and Peterborough Building Society, and Alliance & Leicester all have express conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is defective they may refuse to provide security, obliging the buyer to withdraw.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Hurst Green - A selection of Questions you should consider Prior to buying

Best to be warned if changing the roof or some other significant cost is anticipated to be shared amongst the leaseholders and could well dramatically impact the level of the service costs or result in a specific invoice. Are there any major works on the horizon that will increase the service costs? This information is important as a) areas could cause problems in the building as the common areas may begin to deteriorate if services are not paid for b) if the leasehold owners have a dispute with the running of the building you will wish to know about it

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Hurst Green