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

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

Examples of recent questions relating to leasehold conveyancing in New Addington

Planning to sign contracts shortly on a ground floor flat in New Addington. Conveyancing solicitors inform me that they report fully next week. What should I be looking out for?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in New Addington should include some of the following:

  • You should receive a copy of the lease
  • Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, freeholder
  • Defining your legal entitlements in relation to the communal areas in the block.E.G., does the lease include a right of way over a path or hallways?
  • Does the lease prohibit wood flooring?
  • Ground rent - how much and when you need to pay, and also know whether this is subject to change
  • Repair and maintenance of the flat
  • Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your premises and do you know what it means in practice? For details of the information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in New Addington please enquire of your lawyer in advance of your conveyancing in New Addington

    • I have just started marketing my ground floor apartment in New Addington.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just had a half-yearly maintenance charge demand – Do I pay up?

    The sensible thing to do is pay 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 until 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 busy estate agency in New Addington where we have witnessed a few leasehold sales put at risk due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given inconsistent advice from local New Addington conveyancing firms. Can you shed some light as to whether the vendor of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities 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. This means that the buyer need not have to sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed before, or simultaneously with completion of the sale.

    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 buyer.

    Can you offer any advice when it comes to appointing a New Addington conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?

    If you are instructing a property lawyer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a New Addington conveyancing practice) it is imperative that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We suggested that you make enquires with two or three firms including non New Addington conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be helpful:

    • How experienced is the firm with lease extension legislation?
  • If they are not ALEP accredited then why not?

    • Following months of negotiations we are unable to agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in New Addington. Does the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal have jurisdiction to calculate the appropriate figures?

    if there is a missing freeholder or where there is dispute about what the lease extension should cost, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 it is possible to make an application to the LVT to judgment on the premium.

    An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement matter before the tribunal for a New Addington property is The Woodlands 95 Purley Park Road in April 2009. The Tribunals own valuation produced the figure of £37,912. This case related to 6 flats. The unexpired lease term was 78.32 years.

    What makes a New Addington lease unacceptable for security purposes?

    There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in New Addington. All leases are individual and drafting errors can sometimes mean that certain sections are wrong. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

    • Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the building
    • Insurance obligations
    • A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
    • 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 as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. HSBC Bank, Virgin Money, and Alliance & Leicester all have very detailed requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to grant the mortgage, obliging the purchaser to withdraw.