Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Highams Park:

Get a Quote

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

Top Five Questions relating to Highams Park leasehold conveyancing

I am hoping to complete next month on a studio apartment in Highams Park. Conveyancing solicitors assured me that they are sending me a report tomorrow. What should I be looking out for?

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

  • Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, freeholder
  • Setting out your rights in relation to the communal areas in the block.For example, does the lease contain a right of way over a path or hallways?
  • Does the lease prevent you from renting out the property, or having a home office for business
  • You need to be told what counts as a Nuisance in the lease
  • 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 reserve fund?
  • Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your premises and do you know what it means in practice? For details of the information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Highams Park please ask your solicitor in ahead of your conveyancing in Highams Park

    • My wife and I purchased a leasehold house in Highams Park. Conveyancing and National Westminster Bank mortgage organised. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1998. The conveyancing solicitor in Highams Park who previously acted has now retired.Do I pay?

    The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to make sure that this person is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. You do not need to instruct a Highams Park conveyancing firm to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. Rest assured that regardless, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

    I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a couple of apartments in Highams Park both have approximately fifty years unexpired on the lease term. should I be concerned?

    There are plenty of short leases in Highams Park. The lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the property for a period of time. As the lease gets shorter the marketability of the lease decreases and it becomes more costly to extend the lease. This is why it is advisable to extend the lease term. It is often difficult to sell a property with a short lease as mortgage lenders may be reluctant to lend money on properties of this type. Lease enfranchisement can be a protracted process. We recommend you get professional help from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this field

    Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Highams Park from the perspective of saving time on the sale process?

    • Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Highams Park can be avoided where you appoint lawyers the minute your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information needed by the buyers lawyers.
    • The majority landlords or managing agents in Highams Park levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack sought on or before finding a buyer, thus reducing delays. The average time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most common reason for frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Highams Park.
  • 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? Highams Park leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or laying down wooden flooring calls for a licence from the Landlord acquiescing to such alterations. Should you dont have the approvals to hand do not contact the landlord without checking with your solicitor first.
  • Some Highams Park leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, it would be prudent to place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. The bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is 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 actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their lawyers.
  • If you hold a share in a the freehold, you should ensure that you are holding the original share document. Arranging a re-issued share certificate can be a time consuming formality and frustrates many a Highams Park home move. If a new share is necessary, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (where relevant) for this as soon as possible.

    • We expect to complete our sale of a £225000 flat in Highams Park in just under a week. The managing agents has quoted £336 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and previous years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Highams Park?

    Highams Park conveyancing on leasehold apartments normally involves the buyer’s solicitor submitting enquiries for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to respond to such questions most will be willing to assist. They are entitled levy a reasonable administration fee for responding to questions or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average fee for the information that you are referring to is £350, in some cases it is above £800. The management information fee demanded by the landlord must be accompanied by a synopsis of entitlements and obligations in respect of administration fees, otherwise the charge is not strictly payable. Reality however dictates that you have little option but to pay whatever is requested of you should you wish to complete the sale of your home.

    Following months of correspondence we cannot agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Highams Park. Does the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal have jurisdiction to calculate the appropriate figures?

    Absolutely. We can put you in touch with a Highams Park conveyancing firm who can help.

    An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement matter before the tribunal for a Highams Park premises is 48 Greenleaf Road in December 2009. the lessees sought to exercise their right to purchase the freehold from the landlord by way of collective enfranchisement in accordance with the Leasehold Reform Housing and Urban Development Act 1993.The landlord could not be found.A vesting order was granted from the Bow County Court on 10 September 2007 (Claim No: 8BO04141). The Tribunal held that the premium to be paid was £3,850 This case related to 2 flats. The unexpired lease term was 104 years.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Highams Park