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

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Sample questions relating to Battersea leasehold conveyancing

Harry (my fiance) and I may need to let out our Battersea garden flat for a while due to a career opportunity. We used a Battersea conveyancing practice in 2001 but they have closed and we did not have the foresight to seek any guidance as to whether the lease permits subletting. How do we find out?

The lease governs relations between the landlord and you the flat owner; in particular, it will indicate if subletting is not allowed, or permitted but only subject to certain conditions. The rule is that if the lease contains no expres ban or restriction, subletting is permitted. Most leases in Battersea do not contain an absolute prevention of subletting – such a clause would undoubtedly devalue the flat. Instead, there is usually a basic requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly sending a copy of the tenancy agreement.

I am hoping to complete next month on a garden flat in Battersea. Conveyancing solicitors inform me that they will have a report out to me on Monday. What should I be looking out for?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Battersea should include some of the following:

  • You should receive a copy of the lease
  • Setting out your rights in respect of the communal areas in the building.E.G., does the lease grant a right of way over an accessway or staircase?
  • Does the lease require carpeting throughout thus preventing wood flooring?
  • You need to be told what constitutes a Nuisance in the lease
  • Whether your lease has a provision for a reserve fund?
  • Repair and maintenance of the flat
  • Responsibility for repairing the window frames For details of the information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Battersea please enquire of your solicitor in ahead of your conveyancing in Battersea

    • I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that appears to meet my requirements, at a great figure which is making it more attractive. I have just been informed that the title is leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are particular concerns buying a leasehold house in Battersea. Conveyancing lawyers have are soon to be instructed. Will they explain the issues?

    The majority of houses in Battersea are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can help the conveyancing process. We note that you are buying in Battersea in which case you should be shopping around for a Battersea conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they are used to dealing with leasehold houses. First you will need to check the unexpired lease term. As a lessee you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want to the property. The lease will likely included provisions for example obtaining the freeholder’spermission to carry out alterations. It may be necessary to pay a maintenance charge towards the upkeep of the estate where the property is located on an estate. Your conveyancer will appraise you on the various issues.

    I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a couple of flats in Battersea which have in the region of fifty years remaining on the lease term. Will this present a problem?

    There are plenty of short leases in Battersea. The lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the property for a prescribed time frame. As the lease shortens the saleability of the lease reduces and it becomes more expensive to acquire a lease extension. This is why it is generally wise to increase the term of the lease. More often than not it is difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease as mortgage companies may be unwilling to lend money on such properties. Lease enfranchisement can be a difficult process. We advise that you get professional assistance from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this arena

    Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Battersea with the aim of speeding up the sale process?

    • Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Battersea can be bypassed where you appoint lawyers the minute your agents start marketing the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers lawyers.
    • The majority landlords or Management Companies in Battersea levy fees for providing management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should find out the actual amount of the charges. The management information sought as soon as you have a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The typical amount of time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most common cause of frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Battersea.
  • If you have carried out any alterations to the residence would they have required Landlord’s permission? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Battersea state that internal structural changes or addition of wooden flooring calls for a licence issued by the Landlord acquiescing to such works. If you dont have the paperwork to hand you should not contact the landlord without contacting your conveyancer in advance.
  • Some Battersea leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. Any bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are 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.
  • You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but you should double-check via your conveyancers. A purchaser's lawyer will not be happy to advise their client to where the lease term is less than 75 years. It is therefore important at an as soon as possible that you identify whether the lease term for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

    • Following years of dialogue we cannot agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Battersea. Can we issue an application to the Residential Property Tribunal Service?

    if there is a absentee landlord or if there is dispute about what the lease extension should cost, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the LVT to judgment on the amount due.

    An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Battersea flat is 150A Albert Palace Mansions Lurline Gardens in July 2013. The Tribunal determined that the premium payable for the new lease of the subject property was £42,069 This case was in relation to 1 flat. The unexpired term was 57.06 years.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Battersea