Leasehold Conveyancing in Lechlade - Get a Quote from the leasehold experts approved by your lender

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When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Lechlade, you will need to appoint a conveyancing practitioner with leasehold experience. Whether your lender is to be Halifax, Yorkshire Building Society or Bradford & Bingley be sure to choose a lawyer on their panel. Find a Lechlade conveyancing lawyer with our search tool

Questions and Answers: Lechlade leasehold conveyancing

Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my basement apartment in Lechlade.Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon but I have just received a yearly maintenance charge demand – what should I do?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should 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 managing agents will not acknowledge the buyer unless 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.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold flat in Lechlade. Conveyancing and Platform Home Loans Ltd mortgage are in place. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1992. The conveyancing solicitor in Lechlade who acted for me is not around.What should I do?

First make enquiries of HMLR to be sure that this person is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. You do not need to instruct a Lechlade conveyancing practitioner to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for £3. Rest assured that regardless, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Lechlade from the perspective of speeding up the sale process?

  • Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Lechlade can be avoided where you instruct lawyers as soon as you market your property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the purchasers’ conveyancers.
  • In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s approval? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Lechlade leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or installing wooden flooring necessitate a licence issued by the Landlord approving such works. If you dont have the paperwork in place you should not contact the landlord without checking with your lawyer in the first instance.
  • Some Lechlade leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are financially capable of paying the annual service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their lawyers.
  • If there is a history of any disputes with your landlord or managing agents it is essential that these are resolved before the property is put on the market. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where there is a current dispute. You may have to bite the bullet and pay any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal details of the dispute to the buyers, but it is clearly preferable to present the dispute as historic as opposed to ongoing.
  • If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should ensure that you hold the original share document. Obtaining a re-issued share certificate is often a time consuming formality and frustrates many a Lechlade conveyancing deal. Where a reissued share is required, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (if applicable) for this sooner rather than later.

    • Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on our sale of a £125000 apartment in Lechlade in just under a week. The landlords agents has quoted £384 for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and 3 years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in Lechlade?

    Lechlade conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes usually necessitates the buyer’s lawyer submitting enquiries for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to respond to such questions the majority will be content to do so. They are at liberty charge a reasonable charge for responding to enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average fee for the information that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some situations it is in excess of £800. The administration charge invoiced by the landlord must be accompanied by a synopsis of entitlements and obligations in relation to administration fees, without which the charge is not strictly payable. Reality however dictates that you have little option but to pay whatever is requested of you if you want to exchange contracts with the buyer.

    What are the common problems that you witness in leases for Lechlade properties?

    There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Lechlade. Most leases is drafted differently and drafting errors can sometimes mean that certain provisions are erroneous. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

    • A provision to repair to or maintain parts of the property
    • Insurance obligations
    • 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

    A defective lease can cause issues when trying to sell a property as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Barclays , 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, obliging the purchaser to pull out.

    I acquired a basement flat in Lechlade, conveyancing was carried out 6 years ago. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Similar flats in Lechlade with a long lease are worth £241,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 invoiced every year. The lease finishes on 21st October 2086

    With just 64 years remaining on your lease we estimate the premium for your lease extension to range between £19,000 and £22,000 plus costs.

    The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of detailed due diligence. Do not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional concerns that need to be considered and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward placing reliance on this information without first getting professional advice.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Lechlade