I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Kenilworth. Before diving in I would like to find out the unexpired term of the lease.

If the lease is registered - and 99.9% are in Kenilworth - 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.

Frank (my husband) and I may need to let out our Kenilworth basement flat temporarily due to taking a sabbatical. We instructed a Kenilworth conveyancing practice in 2002 but they have since shut and we did not think at the time get any guidance as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?

Your lease governs relations between the landlord and you the flat owner; specifically, it will indicate if subletting is not allowed, or permitted but only subject to certain conditions. The accepted inference is that if the lease contains no specific ban or restriction, subletting is permitted. The majority of leases in Kenilworth do not contain strict prohibition on subletting – such a clause would undoubtedly devalue the property. Instead, there is usually a basic requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly sending a duplicate of the tenancy agreement.

Expecting to sign contracts shortly on a basement flat in Kenilworth. Conveyancing solicitors inform 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 Kenilworth should include some of the following:

• Does the lease prohibit wood flooring?

You should be told what counts as a Nuisance in the lease

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

Whether your lease has a provision for a sinking fund?

Repair and maintenance of the flat

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 contained in your report on your leasehold property in Kenilworth please enquire of your conveyancer in ahead of your conveyancing in Kenilworth

Can you offer any advice when it comes to choosing a Kenilworth conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a conveyancer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Kenilworth conveyancing firm) it is imperative that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We suggested that you talk with two or three firms including non Kenilworth conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions could be of use:

• How experienced is the firm with lease extension legislation?

If the firm is not ALEP accredited then why not?

We expect to complete the sale of our £450000 apartment in Kenilworth next week. The landlords agents has quoted £300 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and 3 years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Kenilworth?

Kenilworth conveyancing on leasehold apartments normally involves administration charges invoiced by management companies :

• Completing pre-contract enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in Kenilworth
• Supplying insurance information
• 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 Kenilworth leasehold premises is £350. For Kenilworth 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 supply the information.

Kenilworth Leasehold Conveyancing - Sample of Queries Prior to buying

Plenty Kenilworth leasehold properties will have a service charge for the upkeep of the building levied by the management company. If you acquire the property you will have to meet this charge, normally periodically during the year. This could be anything from two or three hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for large purpose-built blocks. There will also be a ground rent for you to pay yearly, this is usually not a significant sum, say approximately £25-£75 but you should to check as on occasion it can be many hundreds of pounds. For many Kenilworth leaseholds the cost for major works are not built into the service charges, although there some managing agents in Kenilworth ask leasehold owners to contribute towards a sinking fund created for the specific intention of establishing a fund for larger repairs or maintenance. What is the maintenance charge and ground rent on the flat?

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Kenilworth