Experts for Leasehold Conveyancing in Covent Garden

Get a Quote

When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Covent Garden, you will need to instruct a conveyancing lawyer with leasehold experience. Whether your lender is to be Lloyds, Birmingham Midshires or Nationwide be sure to choose a lawyer on their approved list. Find a Covent Garden conveyancing lawyer with our search tool

Examples of recent questions relating to leasehold conveyancing in Covent Garden

I’m about to sell my basement flat in Covent Garden.Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon but I have just received a half-yearly maintenance charge invoice – what should I do?

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.

Can you offer any advice when it comes to appointing a Covent Garden conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

When appointing a conveyancer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Covent Garden conveyancing firm) it is most important that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We recommend that you speak with two or three firms including non Covent Garden conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions might be helpful:

  • If the firm is not ALEP accredited then what is the reason?
  • What volume of lease extensions have they conducted in Covent Garden in the last twenty four months?

    • Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Covent Garden from the perspective of expediting the sale process?

    • A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Covent Garden can be bypassed where you get in touch lawyers the minute your agents start advertising the property and ask them to collate the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers lawyers.
    • Some Covent Garden leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, you should 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 buyers or their lawyers.
  • If you have had conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are settled prior to the flat being marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where there is an ongoing dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to pay any arrears of service charge or settle 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 are still duty bound to disclose details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to present the dispute as historic rather than unresolved.
  • If you have the benefit of shareholding in the Management Company, you should ensure that you hold the original share document. Obtaining a duplicate share certificate can be a lengthy process and slows down many a Covent Garden conveyancing deal. If a reissued share is required, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (if applicable) for this as soon as possible.
  • You may think that you are aware of the number of years left on your lease but it would be wise to verify this by asking your lawyers. A purchaser's lawyer will not be happy to advise their client to where the remaining number of years is less than 75 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 property on the market for sale.

    • If all goes to plan we aim to complete the sale of our £350000 flat in Covent Garden on Thursday in a week. The managing agents has quoted £360 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and previous years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge an administration fee for a flat conveyance in Covent Garden?

    Covent Garden conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes more often than not requires the buyer’s conveyancer sending questions for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is not legally bound to respond to such questions the majority will be content to do so. They may invoice a reasonable charge for responding to enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average costs for the information that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some cases it is above £800. The management information fee required by the landlord must be accompanied by a synopsis of entitlements and obligations in relation to administration fees, otherwise the charge is technically not due. Reality however dictates that one has no option but to pay whatever is demanded should you wish to exchange contracts with the buyer.

    I have had difficulty in trying to purchase the freehold in Covent Garden. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal adjudicate on premiums?

    Most definitely. We are happy to put you in touch with a Covent Garden conveyancing firm who can help.

    An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement case for a Covent Garden flat is 20 Avonwick Road in July 2013. The Tribunal was dealing with an application under Section 26 of the Leasehold Reform Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 for a determination of the freehold value of the property. It was concluded that the price to be paid was Fifteen Thousand Nine Hundred and Seventy (£15,970) divided as to £8,200 for Flat 20 and £7,770 for Flat 20A This case affected 1 flat. The the unexpired residue of the current lease was 73.26 years.

    When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Covent Garden what are the most frequent lease defects?

    There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Covent Garden. All leases is drafted differently and drafting errors can sometimes mean that certain provisions are wrong. 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

    A defective lease will likely cause problems when trying to sell a property as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Yorkshire Building Society, Bank of Scotland, and Aldermore all have express conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is defective they may refuse to provide security, obliging the buyer to pull out.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Covent Garden