Leasehold Conveyancing in Edmonton - Get a Quote from the leasehold experts approved by your lender

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Any conveyancing solicitor can theoretically handle your leasehold conveyancing in Edmonton, your mortgage provider may unwilling to work with them if the firm are not on their list of approved solicitors for conveyancing

Edmonton leasehold conveyancing: Q and A’s

I have recently realised that I have 62 years unexpired on my flat in Edmonton. I am keen to get lease extension but my landlord is can not be found. What should I do?

If you qualify, 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 extended by the Court. However, you will be required to prove that you have used your best endeavours to find the freeholder. On the whole an enquiry agent would be useful to conduct investigations and to produce an expert document to be accepted by the court as proof that the landlord can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a solicitor in relation to proving the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Edmonton.

Expecting to sign contracts shortly on a ground floor flat in Edmonton. Conveyancing solicitors have said that they are sending me a report on Monday. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

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

  • Will you be prohibited or prevented from having pets in the property?
  • Does the lease prevent you from renting out the flat, or working from home
  • 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
  • Whether your lease has a provision for a sinking fund?
  • Repair and maintenance of the flat
  • Changes to the flat (alterations and additions)
  • 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 details of the information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Edmonton please enquire of your lawyer in advance of your conveyancing in Edmonton

    • I own a leasehold house in Edmonton. Conveyancing and Coventry Building Society mortgage are in place. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1994. The conveyancing solicitor in Edmonton who previously acted has now retired.What should I do?

    First contact the Land Registry to make sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is indeed the new freeholder. You do not need to instruct a Edmonton 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 freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

    Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Edmonton with the intention of speeding up the sale process?

    • Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Edmonton can be reduced where you instruct lawyers as soon as you market your property and ask them to collate the leasehold documentation needed by the purchasers’ conveyancers.
    • If you have carried out any alterations to the property would they have required Landlord’s permission? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Edmonton leases often stipulate that internal structural changes or laying down wooden flooring calls for a licence issued by the Landlord acquiescing to such alterations. If you fail to have the consents to hand do not contact the landlord without contacting your solicitor before hand.
  • A minority of Edmonton leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand financial (bank) and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are 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 buyers or their solicitors.
  • If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should ensure that you are holding the original share document. Organising a replacement share certificate is often a lengthy formality and frustrates many a Edmonton home move. Where a new share certificate is needed, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (if relevant) for this at the earliest opportunity.
  • You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but it would be advisable double-check via your lawyers. A purchaser's conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the lease term is under 75 years. In the circumstances it is 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 premises on the market for sale.

    • I have attempted and failed to negotiate with my landlord to extend my lease without success. Can I apply to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal? Can you recommend a Edmonton conveyancing firm to represent me?

    if there is a absentee landlord 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 make a decision on the price.

    An example of a Vesting Order and Purchase of freehold case for a Edmonton premises is Ground Floor Flat 4A Baronet Road in February 2010. Following a vesting order by Edmonton County Court on 23rd December 2008 (case number 8ED064) the Tribunal decided that the price that the Applicant for the freehold interest should pay is £8,689.00 This case was in relation to 2 flats. The the number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 80.01 years.

    What makes a Edmonton lease defective?

    There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Edmonton. All leases is drafted differently and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain provisions are wrong. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

    • Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the property
    • 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 issues when trying to sell a property as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Halifax, Barnsley Building Society, and Godiva Mortgages Ltd all have express requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to provide security, obliging the buyer to pull out.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Edmonton