Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Colliers Wood:

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Common questions relating to Colliers Wood leasehold conveyancing

I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Colliers Wood. Before I get started I would like to find out the unexpired term of the lease.

If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and almost all are in Colliers Wood - then the leasehold title will always include the basic details of the lease, namely the date; the term; and the original parties. From a conveyancing perspective such details then enable any prospective buyer and lender to confirm that any lease they are looking at is the one relevant to that title.For any other purpose, such as confirming how long the term was granted for and calculating what is left, then the register should be sufficient on it's own.

Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only Seventy years unexpired on my flat in Colliers Wood. I need to extend my lease but my landlord is missing. What are my options?

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 an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be lengthened by the magistrate. You will be obliged to prove that you have done all that could be expected to track down the landlord. In some cases an enquiry agent would be useful to conduct investigations and to produce a report to be accepted by the court as proof that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer in relation to proving the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court covering Colliers Wood.

I’m about to sell my garden flat in Colliers Wood.Conveyancing has not commenced but I have just received a half-yearly service charge demand – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

It best that you pay the invoice as normal because all ground rent and service charges will be apportioned on completion, so you will be reimbursed by the buyer for the period running from after the completion date to the next payment date. Most managing agents will not acknowledge the buyer unless the service charges have been paid and are up to date so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold house in Colliers Wood. Conveyancing and Godiva Mortgages Ltd mortgage are in place. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1992. The conveyancing solicitor in Colliers Wood who acted for me is not around.Any advice?

First contact HMLR to make sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. There is no need to instruct a Colliers Wood conveyancing solicitor to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for a few pound. Rest assured that regardless, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Colliers Wood with the aim of expediting the sale process?

  • A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Colliers Wood can be reduced if you get in touch lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and ask them to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers solicitors.
  • If you have carried out any alterations to the property would they have required Landlord’s permission? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Colliers Wood leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or laying down wooden flooring necessitate a licence issued by the Landlord consenting to such works. Should you dont have the approvals to hand you should not communicate with the landlord without contacting your conveyancer before hand.
  • A minority of Colliers Wood leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. The bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is financially capable of paying 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 service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their lawyers.
  • If you hold a share in a the Management Company, you should make sure that you are holding the original share certificate. Obtaining a replacement share certificate is often a time consuming formality and slows down many a Colliers Wood home move. If a reissued share certificate is required, do contact the company officers or managing agents (where applicable) for this sooner rather than later.
  • You may think that you are aware of the number of years left on your lease but you should verify this via your solicitors. A purchaser's lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to to exchange contracts if the lease term is less than 80 years. In the circumstances it is important at an early stage that you consider 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.

    • After months of dialogue we are unable to agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Colliers Wood. Can we issue an application to the Residential Property Tribunal Service?

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

    An example of a Lease Extension case for a Colliers Wood flat is 14 Nutwell Street in January 2014. The premium payable for the acquisition of a new lease of the subject premises was in the sum of £30,523 This case affected 1 flat. The unexpired lease term was 62.94 years.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Colliers Wood