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Leasehold conveyancing in Eel Pie Island is more complex than freehold. Your home move will be smoother where you choose a lawyer with a wealth of experience of leasehold conveyancing in Eel Pie Island and across next step up in loc. The lawyers we recommend have been approved by your lender so use our search tool to check.

Frequently asked questions relating to Eel Pie Island leasehold conveyancing

Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only 68 years left on my flat in Eel Pie Island. I now wish to extend my lease but my landlord is missing. What options are available to me?

If you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be granted an extra 90 years by the magistrate. However, you will be required to prove that you or your lawyers have done all that could be expected to locate the freeholder. On the whole a specialist should be helpful to try and locate and prepare an expert document which can be used as evidence that the landlord can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer both on devolving into the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Eel Pie Island.

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

It best that you clear 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. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

I've found a house that seems to tick a lot of boxes, at a reasonable price which is making it more attractive. I have just been informed that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are issues buying a leasehold house in Eel Pie Island. Conveyancing solicitors have are about to be appointed. Will my lawyers set out the risks of buying a leasehold house in Eel Pie Island ?

The majority of houses in Eel Pie Island are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area can assist with the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are purchasing in Eel Pie Island so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Eel Pie Island conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they have experience in advising on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the number of years remaining. As a lessee you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions such as obtaining the landlord’sconsent to conduct alterations. You may also be required to pay a maintenance charge towards the upkeep of the estate where the property is part of an estate. Your lawyer will report to you on the legal implications.

I've recently bought a leasehold flat in Eel Pie Island. Do I have any liability for service charges relating to a period prior to my ownership?

In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. However, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to ensure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.

If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Eel Pie Island with the aim of speeding up the sale process?

  • Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Eel Pie Island can be bypassed if you appoint lawyers as soon as you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the purchasers’ lawyers.
  • The majority freeholders or managing agents in Eel Pie Island levy fees for providing management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should discover the actual amount of the charges. The management information can be applied for as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. The typical amount of time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most usual reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Eel Pie Island.
  • In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s consent? Have you, for example laid down wooden flooring? Most leases in Eel Pie Island state that internal structural alterations or laying down wooden flooring calls for a licence from the Landlord acquiescing to such changes. Where you fail to have the paperwork in place you should not communicate with the landlord without checking with your lawyer first.
  • A minority of Eel Pie Island leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this is the case, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand 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 lawyers.
  • You may think that you are aware of the number of years left on your lease but you should double-check via your conveyancers. A purchaser's lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to where the lease term is under 80 years. It is therefore essential at an as soon as possible that you identify whether the lease term requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

    • I inherited a first floor flat in Eel Pie Island. In the absence of agreement between myself and the landlord, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal make a decision on the premium due for a lease extension?

    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 First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) to arrive at the premium.

    An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Eel Pie Island premises is Ground Floor Flat 91 Bath Road in May 2009. in a case where the freeholder could not be traced, the Brentford County Court ordered that the Lease be surrendered in return for the grant of a new lease of the Premises at a premium determined by the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal. The tribunal concluded that the price payable by the Applicant for the new lease of the premises be £15,900 This case related to 1 flat. The unexpired term was 60.45 years.