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Any conveyancing practice can theoretically handle your leasehold conveyancing in Linton, your mortgage provider may not be willing to work with them if the firm are not on their list of approved solicitors for conveyancing

Examples of recent questions relating to leasehold conveyancing in Linton

Due to complete next month on a basement flat in Linton. Conveyancing lawyers have said that they will have a report out to me on Monday. What should I be looking out for?

Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Linton should include some of the following:

  • Defining your legal entitlements in relation to common areas in the block.E.G., does the lease include a right of way over a path or staircase?
  • You need to be told what constitutes a Nuisance in the lease
  • Repair and maintenance of the flat
  • I don't know whether the lease allows me to alter or improve anything in the flat - you should know whether it applies to all alterations or just structural alteration, and whether consent is required
  • The landlord’s rights to access the flat you be made aware that your landlord has rights of access and I know how much notice s/he must provide.
  • Responsibility for repairing the window frames
  • What the implications are if you breach a clause of your lease? For details of the information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Linton please enquire of your lawyer in ahead of your conveyancing in Linton

    • I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a couple of maisonettes in Linton both have about fifty years left on the lease term. Will this present a problem?

    There is no doubt about it. A leasehold flat in Linton is a deteriorating asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The closer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it adversely affects the value of the premises. The majority of purchasers and mortgage companies, leases with under eighty years become less and less marketable. On a more positive note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the premises for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of a residence with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Linton conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. A more straightforward and quicker method of extending would be to contact your landlord directly and sound him out on the prospect of extending the lease You may find he or she is happy to negotiate informally and willing to consider your offer straight off, without having to involve anyone else. This will save you time and money and it could help you reach a lower price on the lease. You need to ensure that the agreed terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.

    I've recently bought a leasehold house in Linton. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to completion of my purchase?

    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. Strange as it may seem, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. It is an essential part 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 work for a busy estate agency in Linton where we have experienced a number of leasehold sales derailed as a result of short leases. I have been given contradictory information from local Linton conveyancing firms. Can you confirm whether the vendor of a flat can initiate the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

    As long as the seller has been the owner 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 proposed purchaser need not have 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 at the same time as completion of the sale.

    An alternative approach is 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.

    Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Linton with the purpose of saving time on the sale process?

    • Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Linton can be reduced if you instruct lawyers as soon as you market your property and request that they start to collate the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers representatives.
    • Many landlords or Management Companies in Linton charge for supplying management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the actual amount of the charges. The management pack can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The average time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most frequent reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Linton.
  • Some Linton leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, it would be prudent to place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. The bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is 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 buyers or their lawyers.
  • If you have had conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved prior to the flat being put on the market. The buyers and their solicitors will be nervous about purchasing a property where a dispute is ongoing. You may need to swallow your pride and pay 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 ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal particulars of the dispute to the buyers, but it is better to present the dispute as over rather than ongoing.
  • If you hold a share in a the freehold, you should ensure that you are holding the original share certificate. Arranging a new share certificate can be a lengthy process and slows down many a Linton conveyancing transaction. Where a duplicate share is necessary, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (if relevant) for this at the earliest opportunity.

    • Linton Leasehold Conveyancing - Sample of Questions you should ask before buying

      Can you tell me if there are any major works in the near future that could add a premium to the maintenance fees? How long is the Lease? Plenty Linton leasehold properties will be liable to pay a service bill for the upkeep of the block set on behalf of the management company. Should you purchase the flat you will have to pay this liability, normally periodically accross the year. This may be anything from two or three hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for bigger purpose-built buildings. There will also be a rentcharge for you to pay annual, this is usually not a large amount, say about £25-£75 but you should to check it because occasionally it can be many hundreds of pounds.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Linton