I today plan to offer on a house that seems to meet my requirements, at a reasonable figure which is making it more attractive. I have since found out that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are issues buying a house with a leasehold title in Leaves Green. Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed. Will my lawyers set out the risks of buying a leasehold house in Leaves Green ?

The majority of houses in Leaves Green are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor used to dealing with such properties who can help the conveyancing process. it is apparent that you are purchasing in Leaves Green in which case you should be looking for a Leaves Green conveyancing solicitor and check that they have experience in transacting on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the unexpired lease term. As a tenant you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions such as obtaining the freeholder’sconsent to carry out changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a contribution towards the upkeep of the communal areas where the property is part of an estate. Your solicitor should advise you fully on all the issues.

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a couple of apartments in Leaves Green both have in the region of 50 years unexpired on the leases. should I be concerned?

A lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the property for a period of time. As a lease gets shorter the saleability of the lease reduces and it becomes more expensive to extend the lease. For this reason it is generally wise to extend the lease term. Sometimes it is difficult to sell a property with a short lease because mortgage lenders may be reluctant to lend money on properties of this type. Lease extension can be a difficult process. We recommend you seek professional assistance from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this area

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Leaves Green from the point of view of expediting the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Leaves Green can be bypassed where you get in touch lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold documentation needed by the buyers representatives.
• The majority landlords or Management Companies in Leaves Green charge for supplying management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should find out 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 obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most common cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in Leaves Green.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s permission? Have you, for example laid down wooden flooring? Leaves Green leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or installing wooden flooring calls for a licence from the Landlord approving such works. Should you dont have the paperwork in place you should not contact the landlord without contacting your solicitor in the first instance.
• Some Leaves Green leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers put in hand financial (bank) and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is financially capable of paying 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.
• If there is a history of conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is essential that these are resolved prior to the flat being put on the market. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where there is a current 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 prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose details of the dispute to the buyers, but it is better to present the dispute as historic rather than ongoing.

Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on the sale of our £ 450000 garden flat in Leaves Green in 8 days. The freeholder has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and previous years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge an administration fee for a leasehold conveyance in Leaves Green?

Leaves Green conveyancing on leasehold apartments usually requires the buyer’s solicitor submitting enquiries for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to address such questions the majority will be content to assist. They are at liberty levy a reasonable charge for answering enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average costs for the paperwork that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some cases it exceeds £800. The management information fee invoiced by the landlord must be accompanied by a summary of rights and obligations in respect of administration fees, otherwise the charge is technically not due. Reality however dictates that you have no choice but to pay whatever is requested of you if you want to sell the property.

I have tried to negotiate informally with with my landlord for a lease extension without any joy. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal decide on such issues? Can you recommend a Leaves Green conveyancing firm to assist?

Where there is a absentee freeholder or where there is dispute about what the lease extension should cost, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) to make a decision on the price.

An example of a Lease Extension case for a Leaves Green property is 1 Southlands Court Southlands Road in September 2013. The Leasehold Valuation Tribunal determined that the premium to be paid by the tenant on the grant of a new lease, in accordance with section 56 and Schedule 13 of the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 was £30,541 This case related to 1 flat. The unexpired term was 50.57 years.

What are the common defects that you come across in leases for Leaves Green properties?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Leaves Green. Most leases are unique and legal mistakes in the legal wording can result in certain sections are erroneous. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain parts 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 will likely cause problems when trying to sell a property as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Nationwide Building Society, Barnsley Building Society, and TSB all have very detailed conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is defective they may refuse to grant the mortgage, forcing the purchaser to withdraw.

Leaves Green Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Sample of Queries Prior to buying

This information is important as a) areas can cause problems for the block as the communal areas may start to deteriorate if maintenance are not paid for b) if the tenants have an issue with the managing agents you will need to have complete disclosure For most Leaves Green leaseholds the cost for major works tend not to be included within service charges, although there some managing agents in Leaves Green require leasehold owners to contribute towards a reserve fund and this is used to offset against larger works.