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

If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and most are in Kidwelly - then the leasehold title will always include the basic details 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.

Back In 2005, I bought a leasehold flat in Kidwelly. Conveyancing and Clydesdale mortgage organised. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1991. The conveyancing practitioner in Kidwelly who previously acted has long since retired.Do I pay?

The first thing you should do is make enquiries of the Land Registry to make sure that this person is indeed the new freeholder. You do not need to incur the fees of a Kidwelly conveyancing lawyer to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for a few pound. You should note that in any event, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I've recently bought a leasehold house in Kidwelly. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before my ownership?

In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner 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).

I am employed by a reputable estate agency in Kidwelly where we have experienced a few leasehold sales jeopardised as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given contradictory information from local Kidwelly conveyancing solicitors. Could you clarify whether the seller of a flat can start the lease extension process for the buyer?

As long as the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser can avoid having to wait 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed before, or at the same time as completion of the sale.

Alternatively, it may be possible to agree the lease extension with the freeholder 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 purchaser.

All being well we will complete the sale of our £375000 flat in Kidwelly on Thursday in a week. The managing agents has quoted £312 for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and previous years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge such fees for a leasehold conveyance in Kidwelly?

Kidwelly conveyancing on leasehold flats more often than not involves the purchaser’s conveyancer sending enquiries for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to address such questions most will be willing to do so. They are at liberty invoice a reasonable administration fee for responding to questions or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average fee for the paperwork that you are referring to is £350, in some cases it exceeds £800. The management information fee levied by the landlord must be sent together with a synopsis of rights and obligations in respect of administration fees, without which the charge is technically not due. Reality however dictates that one has little choice but to pay whatever is demanded if you want to sell the property.

Kidwelly Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Queries Prior to buying

Please note that where the lease has no more than 80 years it will impact the marketability of the flat. Check with your mortgage company that they are willing to go ahead with the loan given the lease term. A short lease means that you will almost definitely have to extend the lease sooner rather than later and it is worth finding out how much this would cost. Remember, in most cases you would need to own the property for 24 months before you are eligible to extend the lease. How many of the leaseholders are in arrears for their service charge payments? On the whole the cost for major works tend not to be wrapped into the maintenance charges, although there some managing agents in Kidwelly obliged tenants to contribute towards a sinking fund and this is used to offset against major works.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Kidwelly