Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Enfield Highway:

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When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Enfield Highway, you will need to appoint a conveyancing solicitor with leasehold experience. Whether your lender is to be Santander, Yorkshire Building Society or NatWest be sure to find a lawyer on their approved list. Feel free to use our search tool

Sample questions relating to Enfield Highway leasehold conveyancing

I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Enfield Highway. Before I set the wheels in motion I require certainty as to the unexpired term of the lease.

Assuming the lease is registered - and most are in Enfield Highway - then the leasehold title will always include the short particulars of the lease, namely the date; the term; and the original parties. From a conveyancing perspective such details then enable any prospective buyer and lender to confirm that any lease they are looking at is the one relevant to that title.For any other purpose, such as confirming how long the term was granted for and calculating what is left, then the register should be sufficient on it's own.

I have recently realised that I have Fifty years left on my flat in Enfield Highway. I now wish to get lease extension but my landlord is missing. What options are available to me?

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 for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be extended by the Court. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have made all reasonable attempts to track down the freeholder. On the whole an enquiry agent should be helpful to try and locate and prepare an expert document to be accepted by the court as proof that the landlord is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a conveyancer in relation to devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing Enfield Highway.

I am a negotiator for a busy estate agency in Enfield Highway where we have experienced a few flat sales derailed as a result of short leases. I have been given conflicting advice from local Enfield Highway conveyancing firms. Can you clarify whether the seller of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

As long as the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to start 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 at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

Alternatively, it may be possible to agree the lease extension with the freeholder 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 buyer.

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Enfield Highway with the aim of speeding up the sale process?

  • A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Enfield Highway can be reduced where you appoint lawyers as soon as you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold information needed by the buyers solicitors.
  • The majority landlords or Management Companies in Enfield Highway levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the actual amount of the charges. The management pack can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The typical amount of time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most usual cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in Enfield Highway.
  • In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s consent? Have you, for example laid down wooden flooring? Enfield Highway leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or laying down wooden flooring calls for a licence issued by the Landlord approving such alterations. Where you dont have the approvals to hand you should not communicate with the landlord without checking with your solicitor in advance.
  • Some Enfield Highway leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. Any bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are able to meet 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 lawyers.
  • If you hold a share in a the freehold, you should ensure that you hold the original share certificate. Arranging a re-issued share certificate can be a time consuming process and delays many a Enfield Highway home move. Where a reissued share certificate is necessary, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (where relevant) for this as soon as possible.

    • Notwithstanding our best endeavours, we have been unsuccessful in negotiating a lease extension in Enfield Highway. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal adjudicate on premiums?

    in cases where there is a absentee landlord or if there is disagreement about what the lease extension should cost, under the relevant statutes it is possible to make an application to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal to arrive at the sum to be paid.

    An example of a Vesting Order and Purchase of freehold decision for a Enfield Highway property 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 unexpired term as at the valuation date was 80.01 years.

    In relation to leasehold conveyancing in Enfield Highway what are the most common lease problems?

    Leasehold conveyancing in Enfield Highway is not unique. Most leases is drafted differently and drafting errors can sometimes mean that certain sections are wrong. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

    • Repairing obligations to or maintain elements of the property
    • Insurance obligations
    • A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
    • Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

    A defective lease can cause problems when trying to sell a property as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Yorkshire Building Society, Skipton Building Society, and Alliance & Leicester all have very detailed conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to provide security, obliging the purchaser to pull out.