I have just started marketing my basement apartment in Laindon.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just had a yearly service charge demand – Do I pay up?

It best that you discharge 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 looking at a couple of maisonettes in Laindon which have approximately 50 years left on the leases. Will this present a problem?

There are plenty of short leases in Laindon. The lease is a right to use the premises for a period of time. As the lease gets shorter the value of the lease decreases and it becomes more expensive to acquire a lease extension. For this reason it is generally wise 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 such properties. Lease enfranchisement can be a difficult process. We recommend you seek professional help from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this area

I've recently bought a leasehold flat in Laindon. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

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 a negotiator for a reputable estate agency in Laindon where we have witnessed a few flat sales put at risk due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given contradictory information from local Laindon conveyancing firms. Could you shed some light as to whether the seller of a flat can instigate 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. This means 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 has to be done prior to, or simultaneously with 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 purchaser.

All being well we will complete the sale of our £ 325000 flat in Laindon in 5 days. The landlords agents has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and previous years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge such fees for a leasehold conveyance in Laindon?

Laindon conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes usually necessitates the buyer’s conveyancer submitting questions for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is not legally bound to respond to these enquiries the majority will be content to do so. They are entitled charge a reasonable administration fee for answering enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average costs for the information that you are referring to is £350, in some transactions it exceeds £800. The administration charge invoiced by the landlord must be accompanied by a summary of entitlements and obligations in respect of administration charges, without which the invoice is technically not due. Reality however dictates that one has little option but to pay whatever is demanded if you want to complete the sale of your home.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Laindon - Sample of Queries before buying

What prohibitions are there in the Laindon Lease? How much is the maintenance charge and ground rent on the flat? Best to be warned if redecorating or some other significant cost is anticipated that will be shared between the tenants and may well materially impact the level of the maintenance costs or result in a specific invoice.