Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Liskeard. Before I get started I require certainty as to the number of years remaining on the lease.

If the lease is registered - and 99.9% are in Liskeard - 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've recently bought a leasehold flat in Liskeard. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner 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 be sure 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).

What are your top tips when it comes to choosing a Liskeard conveyancing firm to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

When appointing a solicitor for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Liskeard conveyancing firm) it is most important that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We advise that you speak with several firms including non Liskeard conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be helpful:

• How many lease extensions have they carried out in Liskeard in the last 12 months?

What are the costs for lease extension work?

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Liskeard from the point of view of saving time on the sale process?

• Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Liskeard can be avoided if you appoint lawyers the minute you market your property and ask them to collate the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers conveyancers.
• A minority of Liskeard leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand 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 service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their lawyers.

If you have had conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved prior to the flat being marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where there is an ongoing dispute. You may have to bite the bullet 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 ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as over as opposed to unresolved.

If you have the benefit of shareholding in the Management Company, you should make sure that you are holding the original share certificate. Organising a re-issued share certificate is often a time consuming formality and delays many a Liskeard conveyancing deal. If a new share certificate is required, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (if relevant) for this at the earliest opportunity.

You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be advisable double-check by asking your lawyers. A purchaser's conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the remaining number of years is below 75 years. It is therefore essential at an early stage that you consider whether the lease 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 our sale of a £200000 apartment in Liskeard next week. The landlords agents has quoted £384 for Certificate of Compliance, 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 Liskeard?

Liskeard conveyancing on leasehold flats ordinarily results in fees being raised by managing agents :

• Answering pre-exchange enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in Liskeard
• Supplying insurance information
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your solicitor will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Liskeard leasehold property is £350. For Liskeard 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 obliged to provide answers.

Liskeard Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Questions you should consider Prior to Purchasing

It is important to be aware if a new roof is being installed or some other significant cost is pending to be shared between the leasehold owners and will dramatically increase the the maintenance charges or require a one time invoice. The prefered form of lease arrangement is a share of the freehold. In this arrangement the leaseholders enjoy being in charge if their destiny and even though a managing agent is frequently retained where it is bigger than a house conversion, the managing agent acts for the leaseholders themselves. What is the length of the lease?

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Liskeard