Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Dulwich:

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When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Dulwich, you will need to appoint a conveyancing lawyer with leasehold experience. Whether your lender is to be Lloyds, Yorkshire Building Society or NatWest be sure to choose a lawyer on their panel. Find a Dulwich conveyancing lawyer with our search tool

Common questions relating to Dulwich leasehold conveyancing

There are only Seventy years left on my flat in Dulwich. I need to extend my lease but my freeholder 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 submit an application 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. However, you will be required to prove that you have used your best endeavours to track down the landlord. In some cases an enquiry agent may be helpful to try and locate and prepare a report which can be accepted by the court as proof that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a solicitor in relation to devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court covering Dulwich.

I am hoping to exchange soon on a basement flat in Dulwich. Conveyancing lawyers have said that they are sending me a report tomorrow. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

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

  • Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, landlord
  • Setting out your legal entitlements in respect of the communal areas in the block.E.G., does the lease permit a right of way over an accessway or staircase?
  • Does the lease prevent you from subletting the flat, or having a home office for business
  • You need to 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
  • You should have a good understanding of the insurance provisions
  • Changes to the flat (alterations and additions) For details of the information to be included in your report on your leasehold property in Dulwich please ask your solicitor in advance of your conveyancing in Dulwich

    • Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my 2 bed flat in Dulwich.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just received a quarterly maintenance charge demand – what should I do?

    It best that you discharge 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 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.

    I today plan to offer on a house that seems to tick a lot of boxes, at a reasonable figure which is making it more attractive. I have since found out that the title is leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are particular concerns buying a leasehold house in Dulwich. Conveyancing lawyers have are about to be instructed. Will they explain the issues?

    The majority of houses in Dulwich are freehold rather than 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. It is clear that you are purchasing in Dulwich so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Dulwich conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they have experience in advising on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the unexpired lease term. Being a lessee you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want with the house. The lease comes with conditions such as requiring the freeholder’sconsent to conduct changes to the property. You may also be required to pay a maintenance charge towards the maintenance of the communal areas where the house is part of an estate. Your conveyancer should appraise you on the various issues.

    Can you offer any advice when it comes to appointing a Dulwich conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

    If you are instructing a solicitor for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Dulwich conveyancing practice) it is imperative that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We advise that you speak with two or three firms including non Dulwich conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be helpful:

    • How many lease extensions have they completed in Dulwich in the last year?
  • Can they put you in touch with client in Dulwich who can give a testimonial?

    • I have tried to negotiate informally with with my landlord for a lease extension without any joy. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal decide on such matters? Can you recommend a Dulwich conveyancing firm to assist?

    Where there is a missing landlord or where there is disagreement about the premium for a lease extension, under the relevant legislation you can apply to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) to determine the price payable.

    An example of a Lease Extension case for a Dulwich residence is 60 Taymount Grange Taymount Rise in June 2012. The Tribunal determined the premium at £13,346 for a lease extension of a further 90 years This case related to 1 flat. The unexpired lease term was 64 years.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Dulwich