Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Littleborough. Before I get started I would like to find out the number of years remaining on the lease.

Assuming the lease is recorded at the land registry - and almost all are in Littleborough - 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 have just appointed agents to market my ground floor apartment in Littleborough.Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon but I have just had a quarterly maintenance charge demand – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

The sensible thing to do is pay 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 management companies 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.

I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that appears to meet my requirements, at a great price which is making it all the more appealing. I have just discovered that the title is leasehold as opposed to freehold. I would have thought that there are particular concerns buying a leasehold house in Littleborough. Conveyancing lawyers have are soon to be appointed. Will they explain the issues?

Most houses in Littleborough are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local conveyancer used to dealing with such properties who can assist with the conveyancing process. it is apparent that you are buying in Littleborough in which case you should be looking for a Littleborough conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they have experience in dealing with 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 such as requiring the landlord’spermission to conduct alterations. You may also be required to pay a service charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the property is located on an estate. Your solicitor should appraise you on the various issues.

I am attracted to a couple of apartments in Littleborough both have in the region of fifty years unexpired on the leases. Do I need to be concerned?

A lease is a right to use the premises for a prescribed time frame. As a lease shortens the marketability of the lease deteriorate and it becomes more expensive to acquire a lease extension. This is why it is often a good idea to increase the term of the lease. More often than not it is difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease because mortgage companies may be reluctant to lend money on such properties. Lease extension can be a protracted process. We recommend you get professional help from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this area

I am a negotiator for a long established estate agent office in Littleborough where we see a number of leasehold sales put at risk due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received contradictory information from local Littleborough conveyancing firms. Could you clarify whether the owner of a flat can instigate the lease extension formalities 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 kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the proposed purchaser can avoid having to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed before, or simultaneously with completion of the sale.

Alternatively, it may be possible to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord 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.

Littleborough Leasehold Conveyancing - Sample of Questions you should consider Prior to buying

On the whole the cost for major works tend not to be included within service charges, albeit that a few managing agents in Littleborough require tenants to pay into a sinking fund and this is used to offset against larger repairs or maintenance. How many of the leaseholders are in arrears for their service charge payments? Please note if it is no more than eighty years it will have adverse implications on the value of the flat. It is worth checking with your lender that they are content with the length of the lease. Leases with fewer than 80 years remaining means that you will most likely 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 residence for a couple of years before you are eligible to exercise a lease extension.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Littleborough