Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Fortis Green:

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While any conveyancing solicitor can theoretically deal with your leasehold conveyancing in Fortis Green, your mortgage provider may unwilling to work with them if the firm are not on their list of approved solicitors for conveyancing

Recently asked questions relating to Fortis Green leasehold conveyancing

I today plan to offer on a house that appears to meet my requirements, at a great price which is making it more attractive. I have subsequently discovered that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are issues buying a leasehold house in Fortis Green. Conveyancing advisers have are soon to be instructed. Will they explain the issues?

Most houses in Fortis Green are freehold and not leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can assist with the conveyancing process. it is apparent that you are buying in Fortis Green so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Fortis Green conveyancing practitioner and be sure that they have experience in transacting on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. Being a leaseholder you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions for example requiring the landlord’sconsent to conduct alterations. It may be necessary to pay a contribution towards the maintenance of the communal areas where the property is part of an estate. Your solicitor will advise you fully on all the issues.

I am looking at a two apartments in Fortis Green both have approximately forty five years left on the leases. Will this present a problem?

A lease is a right to use the premises for a prescribed time frame. As a lease shortens the value of the lease reduces and it becomes more costly to acquire a lease extension. For this reason it is advisable to increase the term of the lease. It is often difficult to sell a property with a short lease as mortgage companies may be unwilling to lend money on such properties. Lease enfranchisement can be a difficult process. We recommend you get professional help from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this field

Last month I purchased a leasehold house in Fortis Green. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

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. Strange as it may seem, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to be sure 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 Fortis Green with the aim of saving time on the sale process?

  • Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Fortis Green can be reduced if you instruct lawyers the minute you market your property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information needed by the purchasers’ conveyancers.
  • In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s permission? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Fortis Green leases often stipulate that internal structural changes or addition of wooden flooring require a licence issued by the Landlord consenting to such works. Should you fail to have the paperwork to hand you should not contact the landlord without checking with your lawyer first.
  • Some Fortis Green leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this is the case, it would be prudent to notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are 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 service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their lawyers.
  • If you have had conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are settled before the property is put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where there is an ongoing dispute. You may have to bite the bullet and discharge any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as historic as opposed to ongoing.
  • You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but it would be advisable verify this via your conveyancers. A purchaser's lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to where the lease term is below 75 years. It is therefore important at an as soon as possible 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.

    • If all goes to plan we aim to complete the sale of our £200000 apartment in Fortis Green next Friday . The freeholder has quoted £384 for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and 3 years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in Fortis Green?

    Fortis Green conveyancing on leasehold flats usually requires the buyer’s conveyancer sending enquiries for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is not legally bound to answer these enquiries the majority will be content to do so. They are at liberty charge a reasonable charge for answering enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average fee for the information that you are referring to is £350, in some situations it is above £800. The administration charge demanded by the landlord must be sent together with a summary of entitlements and obligations in relation to administration charges, without which the invoice is technically not due. In reality you have no option but to pay whatever is requested of you should you wish to sell the property.

    I own a first floor flat in Fortis Green. In the absence of agreement between myself and the landlord, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal make a decision on the sum payable for the purchase of the freehold?

    in cases where there is a absentee freeholder or where 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 arrive at the sum to be paid.

    An example of a Lease Extension case for a Fortis Green flat is 21 St Matthews Court Coppetts Road in February 2013. the applicant applied to the Tribunal for a determination of the premium payable for a lease extension pursuant to Section 48 of the Leasehold Reform (Housing and Urban Development ) Act 1993. The tribunal therefore ordered that the premium was to be £13,267. This case related to 1 flat. The the number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 68 years.