I today plan to offer on a house that appears to be perfect, at a reasonable price which is making it all the more appealing. I have since been informed that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are particular concerns purchasing a house with a leasehold title in Langford. Conveyancing lawyers have are about to be appointed. Will my lawyers set out the implications of buying a leasehold house in Langford ?

The majority of houses in Langford are freehold rather than leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer used to dealing with such properties who can help the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are buying in Langford in which case you should be shopping around for a Langford conveyancing practitioner and check that they have experience in transacting on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the number of years remaining. Being a lessee you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want with the house. The lease comes with conditions for example requiring the freeholder’spermission to carry out changes to the property. You may also be required to pay a service charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the property is located on an estate. Your lawyer should report to you on the legal implications.

I am employed by a long established estate agent office in Langford where we see a number of leasehold sales jeopardised due to short leases. I have received inconsistent advice from local Langford conveyancing firms. Please can you shed some light as to whether the vendor of a flat can instigate 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 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 sit tight for 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 disposal of the property.

Alternatively, it may be possible 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.

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Langford with the intention of saving time on the sale process?

• Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Langford can be bypassed where you get in touch lawyers the minute your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information needed by the buyers representatives.
• The majority landlords or managing agents in Langford charge for providing management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should discover the fee that they propose to charge. The management information sought on or before finding a buyer, thus reducing delays. The typical amount of time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most common reason for frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Langford.

If you have had any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are resolved prior to the flat being marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where a dispute is unresolved. You may need to swallow your pride and discharge any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to present the dispute as historic as opposed to ongoing.

If you are supposed to have a share in the Management Company, you should ensure that you have the original share certificate. Organising a new share certificate is often a lengthy process and slows down many a Langford home move. Where a reissued share is required, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (if applicable) for this as soon as possible.

You may think that you are aware of the number of years left on your lease but you should verify this via your lawyers. A buyer’s lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to to exchange contracts if the remaining number of years is under 75 years. It is therefore essential at an as soon as possible that you identify whether the lease term requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale.

All being well we will complete the disposal of our £275000 maisonette in Langford in 10 days. The management company has quoted £324 for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and 3 years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge an administration fee for a leasehold conveyance in Langford?

Langford conveyancing on leasehold apartments normally involves administration charges raised by freeholders :

• Answering conveyancing due diligence enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in Langford
• 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 Langford leasehold property is £350. For Langford 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 answers.

In relation to leasehold conveyancing in Langford what are the most frequent lease defects?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Langford. All leases is drafted differently and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain sections are not included. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• A provision to repair to or maintain elements of the premises
• A duty to insure the building
• A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
• Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

You may have a problem when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. National Westminster Bank, Bank of Scotland, and Barclays Direct all have very detailed requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is problematic they may refuse to provide security, forcing the purchaser to pull out.

Langford Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - A selection of Questions you should ask before buying

Can you inform me if there are any major works anticipated that could add a premium to the maintenance fees? How is the lease structured? The best form of lease structure is where the freehold reversion is owned by the leaseholders. In this arrangement the tenants enjoy control and even though a managing agent is often retained where it is bigger than a house conversion, the managing agent retained by the leaseholders.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Langford