I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Lingfield. Before I set the wheels in motion I want to be sure as to the unexpired term of the lease.

Assuming the lease is recorded at the land registry - and 99.9% are in Lingfield - then the leasehold title will always include the short particulars 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.

My wife and I may need to rent out our Lingfield ground floor flat for a while due to taking a sabbatical. We instructed a Lingfield conveyancing practice in 2003 but they have since shut and we did not have the foresight to seek any advice as to whether the lease permits subletting. How do we find out?

Even though your last Lingfield conveyancing lawyer is not around you can check your lease to check if you are permitted to let out the premises. The accepted inference is that if the lease is non-specific, subletting is allowed. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you need to seek permission via your landlord or other appropriate person before subletting. The net result is that you cannot sublet in the absence of first obtaining consent. Such consent must not not be unreasonably refused ore delayed. If your lease does not allow you to sublet you should ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

There are only Seventy years unexpired on my lease in Lingfield. I need to get lease extension but my freeholder is missing. What should I do?

If you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be granted an extra 90 years by the magistrate. You will be obliged to prove that you have used your best endeavours to find the freeholder. In some cases an enquiry agent should be helpful to conduct investigations and prepare an expert document which can be used as proof that the landlord can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a property lawyer both on proving the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Lingfield.

I am attracted to a couple of flats in Lingfield both have about fifty years remaining on the leases. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

A lease is a right to use the premises for a prescribed time frame. As the lease shortens the marketability of the lease decreases and results in it becoming more costly to extend the lease. This is why it is advisable to increase the term of the lease. It is often difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease because mortgage lenders less inclined to grant a loan on such properties. Lease extension can be a difficult process. We recommend you seek professional help from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this field

When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Lingfield what are the most frequent lease defects?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Lingfield. All leases is drafted differently and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain sections are missing. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• A provision to repair to or maintain parts of the building
• A duty to insure the building
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

You may encounter difficulties when selling your property if you have a defective lease as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Santander, The Royal Bank of Scotland, and Britannia all have very detailed conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to provide security, obliging the buyer to pull out.

Lingfield Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Queries before Purchasing

The answer will be useful as a) areas could result in problems in the building as the communal areas may begin to deteriorate if services are not paid for b) if the leaseholders have an issue with the managing agents you will wish to have full disclosure You will want to find out as much as possible about the managing agents as they can either make life much simpler or uncomfortable. As the owner of a leasehold property you are frequently in the clutches of the managing agents both financially and when it comes to every day issues such as the cleanliness of the communal areas. Enquire of other people what they think of them. In conclusion, be sure you know the dates that the service charges are due to the appropriate party and precisely how they are spending that money. The best form of lease arrangement is a share of the freehold. In this situation the lessees have being in charge if their destiny and notwithstanding that a managing agent is often retained where the building is larger than a house conversion, the managing agent is directed by the tenants.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Lingfield