I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that appears to tick a lot of boxes, at a reasonable figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have since been informed that it's a leasehold as opposed to freehold. I would have thought that there are particular concerns purchasing a house with a leasehold title in Llanbedrgoch. Conveyancing advisers have are about to be instructed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Llanbedrgoch are freehold and not leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer used to dealing with such properties who can help the conveyancing process. We note that you are purchasing in Llanbedrgoch so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Llanbedrgoch conveyancing solicitor and check that they are used to transacting on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the unexpired lease term. As a lessee you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions for example requiring the freeholder’sconsent to carry out alterations. You may also be required to pay a maintenance charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the property is part of an estate. Your solicitor will advise you fully on all the issues.

I am attracted to a couple of flats in Llanbedrgoch which have approximately forty five years unexpired on the lease term. Will this present a problem?

There is no doubt about it. A leasehold flat in Llanbedrgoch is a deteriorating asset as a result of the shortening lease. The closer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it adversely affects the salability of the property. For most buyers 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 property 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 Llanbedrgoch 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.

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Llanbedrgoch with the purpose of speeding up the sale process?

• Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Llanbedrgoch can be bypassed where you instruct lawyers the minute you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers solicitors.
• Some Llanbedrgoch leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers put in hand financial (bank) and professional references. The bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is able to meet 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 purchasers or their lawyers.

All being well we will complete our sale of a £275000 garden flat in Llanbedrgoch in 8 days. The landlords agents has quoted £360 for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and previous years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge such fees for a leasehold conveyance in Llanbedrgoch?

Llanbedrgoch conveyancing on leasehold apartments often involves the purchaser’s lawyer submitting enquiries for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is not legally bound to address these enquiries the majority will be willing to do so. They are entitled charge a reasonable charge for answering enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average costs for the paperwork that you are referring to is £350, in some situations it exceeds £800. The management information fee required by the landlord must be sent together with a synopsis of entitlements and obligations in relation to administration charges, without which the invoice is not strictly payable. In reality you have little choice but to pay whatever is requested of you if you want to sell the property.

What makes a Llanbedrgoch lease unacceptable for security purposes?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Llanbedrgoch. All leases is drafted differently and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain sections are erroneous. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• A provision to repair to or maintain parts of the premises
• Insurance obligations
• 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 have difficulties when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Nationwide Building Society, The Royal Bank of Scotland, and Alliance & Leicester all have express requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is defective they may refuse to provide security, obliging the purchaser to pull out.

Llanbedrgoch Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Questions you should consider Prior to Purchasing

What is the name of the managing agents? The answer will be important as a) areas could result in problems for the building as the common areas may begin to deteriorate if repairs remain unpaid b) if the leasehold owners have an issue with the running of the building you will want to have complete disclosure Many Llanbedrgoch leasehold apartments will have a service bill for the upkeep of the block set on behalf of the freeholder. Where you buy the apartment you will have to pay this amount, usually in instalments during the year. This may differ from several hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for bigger purpose-built blocks. There will also be a rentcharge for you to pay yearly, this is usually not a large amount, say around £50-£100 but you need to enquire it because sometimes it could be prohibitively expensive.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Llanbedrgoch