Top Five Questions relating to Cheam leasehold conveyancing
There are only 72 years remaining on my flat in Cheam. I am keen to extend my lease but my landlord is absent. What should I do?
On the basis that you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be lengthened by the magistrate. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you have made all reasonable attempts to track down the lessor. For most situations an enquiry agent may be helpful to try and locate and prepare an expert document which can be accepted by the court as evidence that the landlord is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a conveyancer in relation to devolving into the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Cheam.
Looking forward to sign contracts shortly on a studio apartment in Cheam. Conveyancing solicitors assured me that they are sending me a report next week. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?
Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Cheam should include some of the following:
- You should receive a copy of the lease
I am employed by a long established estate agent office in Cheam where we have witnessed a number of flat sales jeopardised due to short leases. I have received conflicting advice from local Cheam conveyancing firms. Could you shed some light as to whether the vendor of a flat can start the lease extension process 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 start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the buyer need not have to wait 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or at the same time as completion of the sale.
An alternative approach is 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.
Can you offer any advice when it comes to finding a Cheam conveyancing firm to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?
If you are instructing a property lawyer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Cheam conveyancing practice) it is imperative that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We recommend that you talk with two or three firms including non Cheam conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be useful:
- How experienced is the practice with lease extension legislation?
We have reached the end of our tether in negotiating a lease extension in Cheam. Can this matter be resolved via the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal?
in cases where there is a missing freeholder or where there is disagreement about what the lease extension should cost, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 it is possible to make an application to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) to assess the price payable.
An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a Cheam flat is 33 The Maisonettes Alberta Avenue in June 2014. the Tribunal decided that the premium payable for the grant of a new lease be the sum of £20,680 (Twenty Thousand six hundred and eighty pounds). This case affected 1 flat. The unexpired term was 60.43 years.
When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Cheam what are the most common lease defects?
There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Cheam. Most leases are individual and drafting errors can result in certain clauses are not included. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:
- 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.
- Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall
You will have a problem when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Barclays , Barnsley Building Society, and Platform Home Loans Ltd all have express conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to provide security, forcing the buyer to withdraw.
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