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

When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Blackfriars, you will need to chose a conveyancing solicitor with leasehold experience. Whether your lender is to be Halifax, Birmingham Midshires or NatWest make sure you choose a lawyer on their panel. Feel free to use our search tool

Examples of recent questions relating to leasehold conveyancing in Blackfriars

Planning to sign contracts shortly on a leasehold property in Blackfriars. Conveyancing solicitors assured me that they are sending me a report within the next couple of days. What should I be looking out for?

Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Blackfriars should include some of the following:

  • You should be sent a copy of the lease
  • Does the lease require carpeting throughout thus preventing wood flooring?
  • You should be told what constitutes a Nuisance in the lease
  • An explanation as to the provision in the lease to pay service charges - with regard to both the building, and the more general rights a leaseholder has
  • Whether your lease has a provision for a sinking fund?
  • The landlord’s obligations to repair and maintain the building. It is important that you know who is responsible for the repair and maintenance of every part of the building
  • Responsibility for repairing the window frames For a comprehensive list of information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Blackfriars please enquire of your lawyer in ahead of your conveyancing in Blackfriars

  • I today plan to offer on a house that appears to meet my requirements, at a reasonable figure which is making it more attractive. I have since been informed that the title is leasehold as opposed to freehold. I am assuming that there are issues buying a house with a leasehold title in Blackfriars. Conveyancing solicitors have are soon to be instructed. Will my lawyers set out the implications of buying a leasehold house in Blackfriars ?

    Most houses in Blackfriars are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor used to dealing with such properties who can assist with the conveyancing process. We note that you are buying in Blackfriars in which case you should be shopping around for a Blackfriars conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they are used to transacting on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. As a lessee you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions for example obtaining the freeholder’sconsent to conduct alterations. You may also be required to pay a service charge towards the upkeep of the communal areas where the house is located on an estate. Your conveyancer should appraise you on the various issues.

    Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Blackfriars from the point of view of speeding up the sale process?

    • Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Blackfriars can be reduced if you appoint lawyers as soon as you market your property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information needed by the buyers conveyancers.
    • Many landlords or managing agents in Blackfriars charge for supplying management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should find out the fee that they propose to charge. The management information can be applied for as soon as you have a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most usual cause of frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Blackfriars.
  • In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s approval? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Blackfriars leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or installing wooden flooring necessitate a licence from the Landlord acquiescing to such alterations. If you fail to have the paperwork to hand do not communicate with the landlord without contacting your lawyer in advance.
  • A minority of Blackfriars leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this is the case, it would be prudent to 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 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 buyers or their lawyers.
  • If you have had conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are settled prior to the flat being put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be warry 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 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 present the dispute as historic rather than unsettled.

  • We expect to complete the sale of our £275000 maisonette in Blackfriars next week. The management company has quoted £312 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and previous years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge an administration fee for a leasehold conveyance in Blackfriars?

    For the majority of leasehold sales in Blackfriars conveyancing will involve, questions about the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :

    • Completing pre-contract questions
    • Where consent is required before sale in Blackfriars
    • Copies of the building insurance and schedule
    • 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 Blackfriars leasehold premises is £350. For Blackfriars 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 supply the information.

    I have tried to negotiate informally with with my landlord to extend my lease without success. Can one make an application to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal? Can you recommend a Blackfriars conveyancing firm to represent me?

    if there is a absentee freeholder or if there is disagreement about the premium for a lease extension, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 it is possible to make an application to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal to assess the premium.

    An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a Blackfriars property is Flat 89 Trinity Court Grays Inn Road in February 2013. the Tribunal found that the premium to be paid by the tenant on the grant of a new lease, in accordance with section 56 and Schedule 13 to the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 should be £36,229. This case related to 1 flat. The the unexpired residue of the current lease was 66.8 years.

    In relation to leasehold conveyancing in Blackfriars what are the most frequent lease defects?

    There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Blackfriars. All leases are unique and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain clauses are missing. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

    • Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the property
    • Insurance obligations
    • A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
    • Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

    You will encounter a problem when selling your property if you have a defective lease as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Lloyds TSB Bank, Norwich and Peterborough Building Society, and Alliance & Leicester all have express conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is defective they may refuse to grant the mortgage, forcing the buyer to withdraw.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Blackfriars