Experts for Leasehold Conveyancing in Paddington

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When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Paddington, you will need to chose a conveyancing solicitor with leasehold experience. Whether your mortgage company is to be Clydesdale , Yorkshire Building Society or NatWest make sure you find a lawyer on their approved list. Find a Paddington conveyancing lawyer with our search tool

Top Five Questions relating to Paddington leasehold conveyancing

I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Paddington. Before diving in I would like to find out the unexpired term of the lease.

If the lease is registered - and most are in Paddington - then the leasehold title will always include the basic details 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 Paddington. Conveyancing lawyers inform me that they are sending me a report next week. What should I be looking out for?

Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Paddington should include some of the following:

  • Setting out your rights in relation to common areas in the block.E.G., does the lease include a right of way over an accessway or hallways?
  • Does the lease require carpeting throughout thus preventing wood flooring?
  • Are you allowed to have a pet in the flat?
  • Does the lease prevent you from letting out the property, or having a home office for business
  • Whether your lease has a provision for a sinking fund?
  • Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your premises and do you know what it means in practice?
  • Responsibility for repairing the window frames For details of the information to be included in your report on your leasehold property in Paddington please enquire of your solicitor in ahead of your conveyancing in Paddington

    • I've recently bought a leasehold property in Paddington. Do I have any liability for 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. A critical element 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).

    Can you offer any advice when it comes to finding a Paddington conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?

    When appointing a solicitor for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Paddington conveyancing practice) it is most important that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We suggested that you talk with several firms including non Paddington conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions could be of use:

    • If the firm is not ALEP accredited then why not?
  • How many lease extensions have they carried out in Paddington in the last twenty four months?

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

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

    An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Paddington property is Flats 37 & 39 88/90 Portland Place in December 2010. The Tribunal determined that the premium payable for the lease extensions in respect of these two flats is as follows:- For Flat 37, the sum of £385,230.00 For Flat 39, the sum of £436,780.00 This case was in relation to 2 flats. The unexpired term was 24.02 years.

    What makes a Paddington lease defective?

    Leasehold conveyancing in Paddington is not unique. All leases are individual and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain provisions are erroneous. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

    • A provision to repair to or maintain parts of the premises
    • 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 may have 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. Accord Mortgages Ltd, Virgin Money, and Nottingham Building Society all have express conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is defective they may refuse to provide security, obliging the buyer to pull out.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Paddington