Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Kilburn:

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Sample questions relating to Kilburn leasehold conveyancing

I only have 62 years remaining on my lease in Kilburn. I now wish to get lease extension but my landlord is can not be found. What are my options?

On the basis that 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 used your best endeavours to track down the lessor. On the whole a specialist would be useful to conduct investigations and prepare a report to be used as evidence that the landlord is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer in relation to investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Kilburn.

I have just started marketing my basement flat in Kilburn.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just had a quarterly service charge invoice – what should I do?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should 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 managing agents will not acknowledge the buyer unless 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. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

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

  • Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Kilburn can be bypassed if you get in touch lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information needed by the purchasers’ representatives.
  • If you have carried out any alterations to the premises would they have required Landlord’s approval? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Kilburn leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or laying down wooden flooring require a licence issued by the Landlord acquiescing to such alterations. Should you dont have the consents to hand do not communicate with the landlord without contacting your solicitor before hand.
  • A minority of Kilburn leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. The 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 actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their lawyers.
  • If there is a history of any disputes with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved before the property is marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be warry about purchasing a flat where there is an ongoing dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to discharge any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to reveal the dispute as historic rather than unsettled.
  • You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but it would be advisable verify this via your lawyers. A purchaser's conveyancer will be unlikely to recommend their client to to exchange contracts if the remaining number of years is less than 80 years. In the circumstances it is essential at an early stage that you consider whether the lease requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

    • All being well we will complete our sale of a £350000 maisonette in Kilburn next Friday . The landlords agents has quoted £324 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and 3 years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge an administration fee for a flat conveyance in Kilburn?

    Kilburn conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes often necessitates the buyer’s solicitor sending enquiries for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to address these enquiries the majority will be willing to assist. They may invoice a reasonable administration fee for responding to questions or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average fee for the paperwork that you are referring to is £350, in some cases it exceeds £800. The management information fee levied by the landlord must be accompanied by a synopsis of rights and obligations in respect of administration fees, without which the charge is technically not due. Reality however dictates that one has little choice but to pay whatever is requested of you should you wish to sell the property.

    I inherited a second floor flat in Kilburn. Given that I can not reach agreement with the freeholder, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal determine the amount due for the purchase of the freehold?

    if there is a absentee freeholder or if there is dispute about the premium for a lease extension, under the relevant legislation you can apply to the LVT to make a decision on the amount due.

    An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement case for a Kilburn residence is 4 & 4A Charteris Road in June 2009. the Tribunal held that the price to be paid for the enfranchisement of 4/4a Charteris Road to be £15,510 for at 4and £15,694 for at 4a This case affected 2 flats. The remaining number of years on the lease was 70.02 years.

    What makes a Kilburn lease unmortgageable?

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

    • A provision to repair to or maintain elements of the property
    • Insurance obligations
    • Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
    • Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

    You will have a problem when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. HSBC Bank, Leeds Building Society, and Nottingham Building Society all have express conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is defective they may refuse to provide security, obliging the buyer to pull out.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Kilburn