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

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Any conveyancing practice can theoretically handle your leasehold conveyancing in New Southgate, 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 New Southgate leasehold conveyancing

I only have Sixty One years unexpired on my flat in New Southgate. I am keen to get lease extension but my landlord is absent. What are my options?

On the basis that you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be lengthened by the magistrate. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you have made all reasonable attempts to find the landlord. In some cases a specialist may be useful to carry out a search and to produce a report which can be used as evidence that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a solicitor in relation to proving the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court covering New Southgate.

I have just appointed agents to market my 2 bed apartment in New Southgate.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just had a quarterly maintenance charge demand – Do I pay up?

The sensible thing to do is clear 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 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. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

I today plan to offer on a house that seems to be perfect, at a great figure which is making it more attractive. I have subsequently discovered that the title is leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are issues purchasing a house with a leasehold title in New Southgate. Conveyancing solicitors have are about to be instructed. Will my lawyers set out the risks of buying a leasehold house in New Southgate ?

The majority of houses in New Southgate 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 clear that you are buying in New Southgate in which case you should be looking for a New Southgate conveyancing practitioner and check that they are used to dealing with leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. As a leaseholder you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions for example obtaining the landlord’spermission to conduct changes to the property. You may also be required to pay a service charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the property is part of an estate. Your solicitor should advise you fully on all the issues.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold flat in New Southgate. Conveyancing and HSBC Bank mortgage organised. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1996. The conveyancing solicitor in New Southgate who previously acted has now retired.Do I pay?

The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to make sure that this person is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. You do not need to instruct a New Southgate conveyancing lawyer to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for £3. Rest assured that regardless, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in New Southgate from the perspective of expediting the sale process?

  • A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in New Southgate can be bypassed if you appoint lawyers as soon as you market your property and request that they start to put together the leasehold documentation needed by the buyers conveyancers.
  • Some New Southgate leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. Any bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are able to meet 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 service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their lawyers.
  • If you have had any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are settled prior to the flat being marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be nervous about purchasing a flat where there is a current dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to pay any arrears of service charge or resolve 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 unsettled.
  • If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should ensure that you have the original share certificate. Obtaining a duplicate share certificate can be a time consuming process and frustrates many a New Southgate home move. Where a new share is needed, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (if relevant) for this at the earliest opportunity.
  • You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but you should verify this by asking your lawyers. A buyer’s lawyer will not be happy to advise their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the lease term is below 80 years. In the circumstances it is essential at an early stage that you consider whether the lease requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

    • I am the proprietor of a a ground floor purpose built flat in New Southgate. In the absence of agreement between myself and the freeholder, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal make a decision on the sum due for the purchase of the freehold?

    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 arrive at the price.

    An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement decision for a New Southgate flat is 23 Beaconsfield Road in July 2013. The Tribunals decided that the amount payable was £31,203 for the freehold. This case related to 2 flats. The the unexpired residue of the current lease was 70.31 years.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in New Southgate