I am hoping to exchange soon on a studio apartment in Keelby. Conveyancing solicitors have said that they are sending me a report next week. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

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

• The length of the lease term You should be advised as what happens when the lease expires, and informed of the importance of not letting the lease term falling below eighty years

You need to be told what constitutes a Nuisance in the lease

Whether your lease has a provision for a reserve fund?

Changes to the flat (alterations and additions)

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

Responsibility for repairing the window frames

What the implications are if you breach a clause of your lease? For a comprehensive list of information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Keelby please ask your lawyer in advance of your conveyancing in Keelby

My wife and I purchased a leasehold flat in Keelby. Conveyancing and Leeds Building Society mortgage organised. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1998. The conveyancing solicitor in Keelby who previously acted has long since retired.What should I do?

First contact the Land Registry to make sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is in fact the new freeholder. You do not need to instruct a Keelby conveyancing solicitor to do this as it can be done on-line for a few pound. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

Last month I purchased a leasehold house in Keelby. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before my ownership?

In a situation 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. Strange as it may seem, 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 Keelby from the point of view of saving time on the sale process?

• Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Keelby can be reduced where you instruct lawyers the minute you market your property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information needed by the buyers solicitors.
• The majority freeholders or Management Companies in Keelby levy fees for providing management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should discover the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack sought as soon as you have a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most frequent reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Keelby.

If you have carried out any alterations to the residence would they have required Landlord’s consent? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Keelby leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or installing wooden flooring calls for a licence from the Landlord approving such alterations. If you dont have the paperwork in place do not contact the landlord without checking with your conveyancer first.

A minority of Keelby leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. 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 will need to confirm that the buyers are able to meet the yearly 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.

If you are supposed to have a share in the Management Company, you should make sure that you have the original share document. Obtaining a re-issued share certificate can be a time consuming process and slows down many a Keelby conveyancing deal. If a new share is required, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (where relevant) for this as soon as possible.

Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on our sale of a £225000 garden flat in Keelby in 10 days. The managing agents has quoted £300 for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and previous years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge such fees for a leasehold conveyance in Keelby?

Keelby conveyancing on leasehold apartments ordinarily necessitates administration charges levied by landlords agents :

• Answering pre-contract questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Keelby
• Copies of the building insurance and schedule
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your conveyancer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Keelby leasehold premises is £350. For Keelby 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 required to provide the information.

Keelby Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Queries Prior to Purchasing

How many of the leaseholders are in arrears for their maintenance charge payments? This information is important as a) areas can cause problems in the block as the common areas may start to deteriorate where services remain unpaid b) if the leaseholders have a dispute with the running of the building you will need to know about it What is the length of the lease?

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Keelby