Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Knutsford. Before I get started I want to be sure as to the number of years remaining on the lease.

If the lease is registered - and most are in Knutsford - 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.

Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only Fifty years unexpired on my lease in Knutsford. I now want to extend my lease but my landlord is absent. What options are available to me?

On the basis that you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be extended by the Court. However, you will be required to prove that you have done all that could be expected to find the lessor. On the whole a specialist may be helpful to try and locate and to produce an expert document to be used as evidence that the landlord is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer both on devolving into the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court overseeing Knutsford.

I have just appointed agents to market my ground floor apartment in Knutsford.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just had a half-yearly maintenance charge invoice – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should pay the service charge 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.

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a couple of flats in Knutsford both have approximately forty five years left on the lease term. Do I need to be concerned?

There are plenty of short leases in Knutsford. The lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the premises for a period of time. As a lease gets shorter the value of the lease deteriorate and results in it becoming more expensive to extend the lease. This is why it is often a good idea to increase the term of the lease. Sometimes it is difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease as mortgage companies may be reluctant to lend money on properties of this type. Lease enfranchisement can be a protracted process. We recommend you seek professional assistance from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this field

I am employed by a reputable estate agency in Knutsford where we have witnessed a few leasehold sales put at risk as a result of short leases. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Knutsford conveyancing firms. Can you clarify whether the owner of a flat can initiate the lease extension process for the buyer?

Provided that 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 can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.

An alternative approach is 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 buyer.

Knutsford Leasehold Conveyancing - Sample of Questions you should ask before Purchasing

Please tell me if there are any major works in the planning that could add a premium to the maintenance fees? If a Knutsford lease has less than 80 years it will impact the salability of the flat. Check with your lender that they are willing to to proceed given the lease term. Leases with less than 80 years remaining means that you will probably have to extend the lease at some point and you need to have some idea of how much this would cost. For most Knutsfordlease extensions you will need to own the property for a couple of years in order to be eligible to exercise a lease extension. The best form of lease structure is a share of the freehold. In this arrangement the leaseholders enjoy being in charge if their destiny and even though a managing agent is usually retained where it is bigger than a house conversion, the managing agent acts for the leaseholders themselves.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Knutsford