Leasehold Conveyancing in Arkley - Get a Quote from the leasehold experts approved by your lender

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When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Arkley, you will need to appoint a conveyancing practitioner with leasehold experience. Whether your lender is to be Halifax, Birmingham Midshires or Bradford & Bingley be sure to choose a lawyer on their approved list. Find a Arkley conveyancing lawyer with our search tool

Arkley leasehold conveyancing: Q and A’s

I only have 62 years remaining on my flat in Arkley. I need to extend my lease but my landlord is missing. What should I do?

If you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be lengthened by the magistrate. However, you will be required to prove that you have made all reasonable attempts to track down the freeholder. For most situations an enquiry agent may be helpful to conduct investigations and prepare a report to be accepted by the court as evidence that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a property lawyer both on proving the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court covering Arkley.

I am looking at a two maisonettes in Arkley which have approximately forty five years remaining on the leases. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

There are plenty of short leases in Arkley. The lease is a right to use the property for a prescribed time frame. As the lease shortens the saleability of the lease decreases and results in it becoming more expensive to acquire a lease extension. This is why it is generally wise to extend the lease term. It is often difficult to sell a property with a short lease as mortgage lenders may be reluctant to lend money on such properties. Lease enfranchisement can be a protracted process. We recommend you get professional assistance from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this field

I've recently bought a leasehold property in Arkley. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

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 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).

Can you offer any advice when it comes to choosing a Arkley conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

When appointing a solicitor for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Arkley conveyancing practice) it is imperative that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We recommend that you make enquires with several firms including non Arkley conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be of use:

  • How familiar is the firm with lease extension legislation?
  • If they are not ALEP accredited then what is the reason?

    • Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Arkley from the point of view of saving time on the sale process?

    • Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Arkley can be avoided if you get in touch lawyers the minute your agents start marketing the property and request that they start to collate the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers solicitors.
    • In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s permission? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Arkley state that internal structural changes or addition of wooden flooring require a licence from the Landlord acquiescing to such works. If you dont have the paperwork in place you should not communicate with the landlord without contacting your conveyancer in advance.
  • A minority of Arkley 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 financial (bank) and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is able to meet the yearly 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 there is a history of any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved before the property is put on the market. The buyers and their solicitors will be concerned about purchasing a flat where a dispute is ongoing. You may have to bite the bullet and discharge any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to 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 reveal the dispute as historic rather than unresolved.
  • You may think that you are aware of the number of years remaining on your lease but you should verify this by asking your conveyancers. A buyer’s lawyer will not be happy to advise their client to where the remaining number of years is under 80 years. In the circumstances it is important at an early stage that you identify whether the lease term requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale.

    • I am the registered owner of a first floor flat in Arkley. In the absence of agreement between myself and the landlord, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal make a decision on the sum payable for a lease extension?

    Most certainly. We can put you in touch with a Arkley conveyancing firm who can help.

    An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a Arkley flat is Ground Floor Maisonette 17 Milton Road in January 2014. The Tribunal determined the premium payable by the Applicant to the should be £13,299 This case related to 1 flat. The the number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 71.73 years.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Arkley