Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in East Barnet:

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Recently asked questions relating to East Barnet leasehold conveyancing

Planning to complete next month on a basement flat in East Barnet. Conveyancing solicitors have said 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 East Barnet should include some of the following:

  • You should receive a copy of the lease
  • Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, freeholder
  • You need to be told what constitutes a Nuisance in the lease
  • Repair and maintenance of the flat
  • The landlord’s rights to access the flat you be made aware that your landlord has rights of access and I know how much notice s/he must provide.
  • Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your property and do you know what it means in practice?
  • The landlord’s obligations to repair and maintain the building. It is important that you know who is responsible for the repair and maintenance of every part of the building For a comprehensive list of information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in East Barnet please ask your conveyancer in ahead of your conveyancing in East Barnet

    • My wife and I purchased a leasehold house in East Barnet. Conveyancing and Skipton Building Society mortgage organised. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1995. The conveyancing practitioner in East Barnet who acted for me is not around.Do I pay?

    The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to be sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a East Barnet conveyancing practitioner to do this as it can be done on-line for £3. You should note that in any event, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

    I work for a long established estate agency in East Barnet where we have witnessed a few flat sales put at risk as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given inconsistent advice from local East Barnet conveyancing firms. Please can you clarify whether the seller of a flat can initiate the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

    Provided that the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the buyer can avoid having to wait 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.

    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 purchaser.

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

    If you are instructing a conveyancer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a East Barnet conveyancing firm) it is most important that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We advise that you speak with two or three firms including non East Barnet conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions could be useful:

    • Can they put you in touch with client in East Barnet who can give a testimonial?
  • What are the legal fees for lease extension conveyancing?

    • I have had difficulty in trying to purchase the freehold in East Barnet. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal adjudicate on premiums?

    if there is a missing landlord or if there is disagreement about what the lease extension should cost, under the relevant legislation it is possible to make an application to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) to calculate the premium.

    An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement decision for a East Barnet residence is 23 Beaconsfield Road in July 2013. The Tribunals decided that the amount payable was £31,203 for the freehold. This case affected 2 flats. The the unexpired residue of the current lease was 70.31 years.

    What makes a East Barnet lease unacceptable for security purposes?

    Leasehold conveyancing in East Barnet is not unique. Most leases are unique and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain clauses are missing. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

    • A provision to repair to or maintain parts of the building
    • A duty to insure the building
    • 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 primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Santander, Leeds Building Society, and Alliance & Leicester all have express conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is defective they may refuse to provide security, forcing the purchaser to pull out.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in East Barnet