Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Kemp Town:

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Top Five Questions relating to Kemp Town leasehold conveyancing

I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Kemp Town. Before I set the wheels in motion I require certainty as to the number of years remaining on the lease.

If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and 99.9% are in Kemp Town - then the leasehold title will always include the short particulars of the lease, namely the date; the term; and the original parties. From a conveyancing perspective such details then enable any prospective buyer and lender to confirm that any lease they are looking at is the one relevant to that title.For any other purpose, such as confirming how long the term was granted for and calculating what is left, then the register should be sufficient on it's own.

I am hoping to sign contracts shortly on a garden flat in Kemp Town. Conveyancing lawyers assured me that they report fully on Monday. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

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

  • Defining your legal entitlements in respect of common areas in the block.For example, does the lease provide for a right of way over an accessway or staircase?
  • Do you need to have carpet in the flat or are you allowed wood flooring?
  • You must be told what counts as a Nuisance in the lease
  • Ground rent - how much and when you need to pay, and also know whether this will change in the future
  • 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
  • The landlord’s rights to access the flat you be made aware that your landlord has rights of access and I know how much notice s/he must provide.
  • Responsibility for repairing the window frames For details of the information to be included in your report on your leasehold property in Kemp Town please ask your conveyancer in advance of your conveyancing in Kemp Town

    • I am a negotiator for a busy estate agency in Kemp Town where we have experienced a few flat sales put at risk as a result of short leases. I have received conflicting advice from local Kemp Town conveyancing firms. Please can you clarify whether the seller of a flat can instigate the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

    As long as the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence 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 sale.

    An alternative approach is 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.

    Can you offer any advice when it comes to choosing a Kemp Town conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?

    If you are instructing a solicitor for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Kemp Town conveyancing practice) it is essential that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We advise that you talk with several firms including non Kemp Town conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be of use:

    • Can they put you in touch with client in Kemp Town who can give a testimonial?
  • What are the charges for lease extension work?

    • Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Kemp Town with the intention of expediting the sale process?

    • A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Kemp Town can be bypassed where you get in touch lawyers the minute you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation needed by the buyers lawyers.
    • In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s consent? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Most leases in Kemp Town state that internal structural changes or laying down wooden flooring necessitate a licence issued by the Landlord consenting to such alterations. Where you dont have the paperwork to hand you should not communicate with the landlord without contacting your solicitor first.
  • A minority of Kemp Town 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 should make it clear that the buyer is 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 purchasers or their solicitors.
  • If there is a history of any disputes with your landlord or managing agents it is essential that these are settled prior to the flat being put on the market. The buyers and their solicitors will be warry about purchasing a flat where a dispute is unresolved. You may have to bite the bullet and pay 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 will still have to reveal details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to present the dispute as historic rather than ongoing.
  • If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should ensure that you hold the original share certificate. Arranging a replacement share certificate is often a time consuming process and frustrates many a Kemp Town conveyancing transaction. Where a new share certificate is required, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (where relevant) for this as soon as possible.

    • Kemp Town Leasehold Conveyancing - Sample of Queries before buying

      Does this lease have more than 90 years unexpired? You should be aware that where the lease has less than eighty years it will affect the salability of the property. Check with your mortgage company that they are content with the length of the lease. Leases with fewer than 80 years remaining means that you will almost definitely have to extend the lease at some point and you need to have some idea of what this will be. For most Kemp Townlease extensions you will need to own the residence for 24 months before you are eligible to extend the lease. How is the lease structured?

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Kemp Town