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

Assuming the lease is registered - and almost all are in Limbury - 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.

I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that seems to meet my requirements, at a great figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have just found out that the title is leasehold as opposed to freehold. I am assuming that there are particular concerns buying a leasehold house in Limbury. Conveyancing solicitors have are about to be instructed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Limbury are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can help the conveyancing process. We note that you are purchasing in Limbury in which case you should be shopping around for a Limbury conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they have experience in advising on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. As a tenant you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease comes with conditions for example obtaining the freeholder’spermission to conduct alterations. You may also be required to pay a contribution towards the maintenance of the estate where the house is located on an estate. Your solicitor will report to you on the legal implications.

I've recently bought a leasehold flat in Limbury. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before my ownership?

In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee 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 ensure 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 busy estate agency in Limbury where we see a few flat sales derailed due to short leases. I have received conflicting advice from local Limbury conveyancing firms. Could you shed some light as to whether the vendor of a flat can initiate the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

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. The benefit of this is that the buyer 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 before, or simultaneously with 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 buyer.

If all goes to plan we aim to complete the disposal of our £250000 garden flat in Limbury in just under a week. The managing agents has quoted £312 for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and previous years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in Limbury?

Limbury conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes usually involves the purchaser’s conveyancer sending questions for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is not legally bound to address these enquiries the majority will be willing to assist. They are entitled levy a reasonable administration fee 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 sent together with a synopsis of entitlements and obligations in respect of administration fees, without which the invoice is technically not due. Reality however dictates that you have no option but to pay whatever is requested of you if you want to complete the sale of your home.

Limbury Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Queries before buying

Make sure you find out if the the lease includes any adverse restrictions in the lease. By way of example it is reasonably common in Limbury leases that pets are not allowed in in a block in Limbury. If you like the apartmentin Limbury however your dog can’t make the move with you then you will be faced hard decision. Please note if it is no more than 80 years it will impact the marketability of the flat. It is worth checking with your mortgage company that they are content with residual term of the lease. 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 will be. Remember, in most cases you will be required to have owned the premises for 24 months in order to be legally able to carry out a lease extension. Plenty Limbury leasehold apartments will incur a service charge for the upkeep of the building invoiced by the landlord. Should you purchase the apartment you will have to meet this amount, usually periodically throughout the year. This may vary from a few hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for blocks with lifts and large common grounds. There will also be a ground rent for you to pay yearly, normally this is not a significant sum, say around £25-£75 but you should to enquire as sometimes it could be many hundreds of pounds.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Limbury