Leasehold Conveyancing in Locksbottom - Get a Quote from the leasehold experts approved by your lender

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

Recently asked questions relating to Locksbottom leasehold conveyancing

I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Locksbottom. Before I get started I would like to find out the unexpired term of the lease.

If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and most are in Locksbottom - then the leasehold title will always include the short particulars of the lease, namely the date; the term; and the original parties. From a conveyancing perspective such details then enable any prospective buyer and lender to confirm that any lease they are looking at is the one relevant to that title.For any other purpose, such as confirming how long the term was granted for and calculating what is left, then the register should be sufficient on it's own.

Expecting to exchange soon on a ground floor flat in Locksbottom. Conveyancing solicitors assured me that they will have a report out to me on Monday. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Locksbottom 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 flat itself but could also include a loft or basement if applicable.
  • Are pets allowed in the flat?
  • Ground rent - how much and when you need to pay, and also know whether this is subject to change
  • Changes to the flat (alterations and additions)
  • The landlord’s obligations to repair and maintain the building. It is important that you know who is responsible for the repair and maintenance of every part of the building
  • What options are open to you if a neighbour is in violation of a provision in their lease? For a comprehensive list of information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Locksbottom please ask your solicitor in ahead of your conveyancing in Locksbottom

    • Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my basement flat in Locksbottom.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just had a yearly maintenance charge demand – Do I pay up?

    Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should discharge the invoice 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 management companies 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.

    I am a negotiator for a reputable estate agency in Locksbottom where we have experienced a few flat sales derailed as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Locksbottom conveyancing solicitors. Please can you confirm whether the vendor of a flat can initiate the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

    As long as the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser can avoid having to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

    Alternatively, it may be possible 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 choosing a Locksbottom conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

    If you are instructing a property lawyer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Locksbottom conveyancing firm) it is imperative that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We recommend that you speak with two or three firms including non Locksbottom conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions could be useful:

    • If they are not ALEP accredited then why not?
  • What are the legal fees for lease extension work?

    • I am the leaseholder of a a ground floor purpose built flat in Locksbottom. Given that I can not reach agreement with the freeholder, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal make a decision on the sum payable for a lease extension?

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

    An example of a Lease Extension case for a Locksbottom premises 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 was in relation to 1 flat. The the unexpired residue of the current lease was 50.57 years.