Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Lee:

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Lee leasehold conveyancing: Q and A’s

Looking forward to complete next month on a garden flat in Lee. Conveyancing solicitors inform me that they are sending me a report on Monday. What should I be looking out for?

Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Lee should include some of the following:

  • You should be sent a copy of the lease
  • The physical extent of the property. This will be the apartment itself but might incorporate a roof space or basement if applicable.
  • Setting out your legal entitlements in respect of the communal areas in the block.By way of example, does the lease include a right of way over a path or staircase?
  • 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
  • You should have a good understanding of the insurance provisions
  • Repair and maintenance of the flat
  • What you can do if a neighbour is in violation of a provision in their lease? For details of the information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Lee please enquire of your lawyer in advance of your conveyancing in Lee

    • I am a negotiator for a long established estate agent office in Lee where we see a number of leasehold sales put at risk as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received contradictory information from local Lee conveyancing firms. Please can you clarify whether the owner of a flat can start the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

    Provided that the seller has been the owner 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. This means that the proposed purchaser need not have to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.

    An alternative approach is 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 purchaser.

    Can you offer any advice when it comes to finding a Lee conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?

    If you are instructing a property lawyer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Lee conveyancing practice) it is imperative that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We suggested that you talk with two or three firms including non Lee conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions could be helpful:

    • If they are not ALEP accredited then why not?
  • Can they put you in touch with client in Lee who can give a testimonial?

    • Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Lee with the intention of speeding up the sale process?

    • Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Lee can be bypassed if you appoint lawyers the minute you market your property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the purchasers’ lawyers.
    • Many landlords or managing agents in Lee charge for supplying management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should discover the actual amount of the charges. The management pack sought as soon as you have a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The average time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most common reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Lee.
  • A minority of Lee 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 put in hand financial (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 solicitors.
  • If there is a history of any disputes with your landlord or managing agents it is essential that these are resolved before the property is put on the market. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where there is an ongoing dispute. You may have to bite the bullet and pay 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 buyers, but it is better to present the dispute as historic as opposed to unresolved.
  • If you have the benefit of shareholding in the freehold, you should ensure that you have the original share document. Organising a re-issued share certificate is often a lengthy process and frustrates many a Lee conveyancing deal. If a duplicate share certificate is necessary, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (where relevant) for this at the earliest opportunity.

    • Notwithstanding our best endeavours, we have been unsuccessful in trying to purchase the freehold in Lee. Can this matter be resolved via the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal?

    Most definitely. We can put you in touch with a Lee conveyancing firm who can help.

    An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement case for a Lee residence is 18 Handen Road in April 2013. On 26 October 2012 District Judge Zimmels sitting at the Lambeth County Court made a Vesting Order that the Applicants be granted the right to acquire the freehold upon such terms and at such price determined by the LVT. The Tribunal arrived a figure of £39,535 as a valuation for the enfranchisement. This case affected 3 flats. The unexpired term was 69.05 years.

    When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Lee what are the most common lease defects?

    Leasehold conveyancing in Lee is not unique. Most leases are individual and drafting errors can result in certain provisions are erroneous. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

    • Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the premises
    • A duty to insure the building
    • 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

    You may encounter 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, Coventry Building Society, and Godiva Mortgages Ltd 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 problematic they may refuse to grant the mortgage, forcing the buyer to withdraw.