Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Cudham:

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When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Cudham, you will need to appoint a conveyancing solicitor with leasehold experience. Whether your lender is to be Lloyds, Birmingham Midshires or NatWest make sure you find a lawyer on their approved list. Find a Cudham conveyancing lawyer with our search tool

Sample questions relating to Cudham leasehold conveyancing

My fiance and I may need to sub-let our Cudham basement flat for a while due to a career opportunity. We instructed a Cudham conveyancing practice in 2001 but they have closed and we did not have the foresight to seek any guidance as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?

A lease governs the relationship between the landlord and you the leaseholder; specifically, it will indicate if subletting is prohibited, or permitted but only subject to certain conditions. The rule is that if the lease contains no specific ban or restriction, subletting is permitted. The majority of leases in Cudham do not prevent subletting altogether – such a provision would undoubtedly devalue the flat. In most cases there is simply a requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly supplying a copy of the sublease.

Looking forward to complete next month on a garden flat in Cudham. Conveyancing solicitors inform me that they report fully within the next couple of days. What should I be looking out for?

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

  • Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, landlord
  • Defining your rights in respect of common areas in the block.By way of example, does the lease grant a right of way over an accessway or staircase?
  • Ground rent - how much and when you need to pay, and also know whether this will change in the future
  • You should have a good understanding of the insurance provisions
  • Repair and maintenance of the flat
  • Changes to the flat (alterations and additions)
  • Responsibility for repairing the window frames For details of the information to be included in your report on your leasehold property in Cudham please ask your solicitor in ahead of your conveyancing in Cudham

    • Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my ground floor flat in Cudham.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just received a quarterly maintenance charge invoice – Do I pay up?

    It best that you pay the service charge 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 management companies will not acknowledge the buyer until 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.

    I've found a house that appears to tick a lot of boxes, at a great price which is making it more attractive. I have subsequently been informed that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are issues purchasing a house with a leasehold title in Cudham. Conveyancing advisers have are soon to be instructed. Will they explain the issues?

    Most houses in Cudham are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor used to dealing with such properties who can help the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are buying in Cudham in which case you should be shopping around for a Cudham conveyancing solicitor and check that they are used to dealing with leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the unexpired lease term. As a tenant you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions for example obtaining the freeholder’spermission to carry out alterations. You may also be required to pay a contribution towards the upkeep of the communal areas where the house is part of an estate. Your solicitor should advise you fully on all the issues.

    Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Cudham from the perspective of speeding up the sale process?

    • A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Cudham can be bypassed if you get in touch lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information needed by the buyers representatives.
    • If you have carried out any alterations to the premises would they have required Landlord’s permission? Have you, for example laid down wooden flooring? Cudham leases often stipulate that internal structural changes or addition of wooden flooring necessitate a licence issued by the Landlord acquiescing to such works. Should you dont have the approvals in place you should not communicate with the landlord without contacting your solicitor before hand.
  • A minority of Cudham 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 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 actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their solicitors.
  • If you are supposed to have a share in the Management Company, you should ensure that you have the original share certificate. Arranging a replacement share certificate can be a time consuming process and slows down many a Cudham home move. Where a reissued share is necessary, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (where relevant) for this as soon as possible.
  • You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but you should verify this by asking your lawyers. A purchaser's conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to where the remaining number of years is less than 80 years. It is therefore essential at an early stage that you consider whether the lease for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale.

    • Following months of dialogue we simply can't agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Cudham. Can we issue an application to the Residential Property Tribunal Service?

    if there is a missing 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 determine the amount due.

    An example of a Lease Extension case for a Cudham flat is 1 Southlands Court Southlands Road in September 2013. The Leasehold Valuation Tribunal determined that the premium to be paid by the tenant on the grant of a new lease, in accordance with section 56 and Schedule 13 of the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 was £30,541 This case related to 1 flat. The the number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 50.57 years.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Cudham