I've found a house that appears to be perfect, at a great price which is making it more attractive. I have since been informed that the title is leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are particular concerns buying a house with a leasehold title in Newington. Conveyancing advisers have not yet been instructed. Will my lawyers set out the implications of buying a leasehold house in Newington ?

The majority of houses in Newington are freehold and not leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area can assist with the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are buying in Newington so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Newington conveyancing practitioner and check that they have experience in transacting on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the number of years remaining. As a leaseholder you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions for example obtaining the landlord’sconsent to conduct changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a contribution towards the maintenance of the communal areas where the house is located on an estate. Your solicitor will appraise you on the various issues.

I own a leasehold house in Newington. Conveyancing and Virgin Money mortgage organised. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1992. The conveyancing practitioner in Newington who previously acted has now retired.Do I pay?

The first thing you should do is contact the Land Registry to be sure that this person is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. There is no need to incur the fees of a Newington conveyancing lawyer to do this as it can be done on-line for less than a fiver. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

Last month I purchased a leasehold flat in Newington. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before my ownership?

In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. Strange as it may seem, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. It is an essential part of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to ensure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.

If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).

What advice can you give us when it comes to appointing a Newington conveyancing firm to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

When appointing a property lawyer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Newington conveyancing practice) it is most important that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We recommend that you talk with several firms including non Newington conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions might be of use:

• How experienced is the firm with lease extension legislation?

After years of negotiations we simply can't agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Newington. Does the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal have jurisdiction to calculate the appropriate figures?

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

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement matter before the tribunal for a Newington flat is 1-41 Royal Tower Lodge 40 Cartwright Street in April 2013. the tribunal adding the agreed value of capitalised ground rents and the reversion the price to be paid for the freehold was £1,187,000 This case related to 41 flats. The remaining number of years on the lease was 107 years.

What makes a Newington lease defective?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Newington. Most leases is drafted differently and drafting errors can sometimes mean that certain provisions are wrong. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• A provision to repair to or maintain elements of the building
• Insurance obligations
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

You will encounter difficulties when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Santander, Chelsea Building Society, and Barclays Direct all have very detailed requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is problematic they may refuse to provide security, forcing the purchaser to pull out.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Newington