Experts for Leasehold Conveyancing in Longford

Get a Quote

Need to find a solicitor for leasehold conveyancing in Longford on your lender’s panel? Use our search tool to find approved local Longford conveyancing lawyers or national solicitors on your lender’s panel .

Sample questions relating to Longford leasehold conveyancing

I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Longford. Before I get started I would like to find out the number of years remaining on the lease.

Assuming the lease is registered - and 99.9% are in Longford - 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.

I wish to sublet my leasehold apartment in Longford. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask her. Is permission from the freeholder required?

Even though your previous Longford conveyancing solicitor is no longer available you can review your lease to check if you are permitted to let out the premises. The accepted inference is that if the deeds are silent, subletting is permitted. There may be a precondition that you need to obtain consent via your landlord or other appropriate person in advance of subletting. This means that you cannot sublet without first obtaining permission. The consent must not not be unreasonably refused ore delayed. If the lease does not allow you to sublet you will need to ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

I am looking at a two apartments in Longford which have about forty five years unexpired on the leases. Will this present a problem?

There are plenty of short leases in Longford. The lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the property for a period of time. As the lease gets shorter the saleability of the lease reduces and results in it becoming more expensive to acquire a lease extension. This is why it is often a good idea to extend the lease term. More often than not it is difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease as mortgage companies less inclined to grant a loan on such properties. Lease extension can be a difficult process. We recommend you seek professional assistance from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this area

I am a negotiator for a busy estate agency in Longford where we see a number of flat sales derailed as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received contradictory information from local Longford conveyancing solicitors. Could you confirm whether the vendor of a flat can initiate the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that 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 prior to, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

Alternatively, it may be possible to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord 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.

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Longford with the intention of expediting the sale process?

  • Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Longford can be avoided if you appoint lawyers as soon as you market your property and request that they start to collate the leasehold information needed by the buyers solicitors.
  • Many landlords or Management Companies in Longford charge for supplying management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should discover the fee that they propose to charge. The management information can be applied for 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 cause of frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Longford.
  • A minority of Longford leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, it would be prudent to notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. Any 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 conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved before the property is marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where there is an ongoing dispute. You may need to swallow your pride and discharge any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to completion of the sale. 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 clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as historic rather than ongoing.
  • If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should ensure that you have the original share certificate. Arranging a duplicate share certificate is often a lengthy process and delays many a Longford conveyancing deal. Where a reissued share certificate is necessary, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (if applicable) for this at the earliest opportunity.

    • I have tried to negotiate informally with with my landlord to extend my lease without success. Can a leaseholder make an application to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal? Can you recommend a Longford conveyancing firm to represent me?

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

    An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement decision for a Longford premises is 164 Nestles Avenue in October 2013. The tribunal agreed with the proposed price of £20,158 for the freehold and determined that that sum is the amount to be paid into court This case was in relation to 2 flats. The the unexpired residue of the current lease was 69 years.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Longford