Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Plumstead:

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Leasehold conveyancing in Plumstead is more complex than freehold. Your home move will be smoother where you choose a lawyer with a wealth of experience of leasehold conveyancing in Plumstead and throughout next step up in loc. The lawyers we recommend have been approved by your lender so use our search tool to check.

Plumstead leasehold conveyancing Example Support Desk Enquiries

Frank (my husband) and I may need to rent out our Plumstead basement flat for a while due to a career opportunity. We used a Plumstead conveyancing practice in 2001 but they have closed and we did not think at the time get any advice as to whether the lease permits subletting. How do we find out?

Even though your previous Plumstead conveyancing solicitor is no longer available you can check your lease to check if it allows you to sublet the premises. The accepted inference is that if the lease is non-specific, subletting is permitted. There may be a precondition that you need to obtain consent from your landlord or other appropriate person in advance of subletting. The net result is you not allowed to sublet without first obtaining permission. The consent should not be unreasonably refused ore delayed. If your lease prohibits you from subletting the property you should ask your landlord for their consent.

Planning to sign contracts shortly on a garden flat in Plumstead. Conveyancing lawyers have said that they are sending me a report next week. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

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

  • You should be sent a copy of the lease
  • Does the lease require carpeting throughout thus preventing wood flooring?
  • Whether the lease restricts you from renting out the flat, or having a home office for business
  • Whether your lease has a provision for a reserve fund?
  • The landlord’s rights to access the flat you be made aware that your landlord has rights of access and I know how much notice s/he must provide.
  • Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your premises and do you know what it means in practice?
  • What options are open to you if a neighbour is in violation of a provision in their lease? For a comprehensive list of information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Plumstead please enquire of your solicitor in advance of your conveyancing in Plumstead

    • I have just appointed agents to market my ground floor flat in Plumstead.Conveyancing has not commenced but I have just received a quarterly service charge demand – what should I do?

    Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should pay 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 unless 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.

    My wife and I purchased a leasehold flat in Plumstead. Conveyancing and Barclays Direct mortgage organised. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1997. The conveyancing practitioner in Plumstead who previously acted has long since retired.Do I pay?

    First make enquiries of the Land Registry to be sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. There is no need to incur the fees of a Plumstead conveyancing firm to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

    Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Plumstead from the point of view of expediting the sale process?

    • A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Plumstead can be bypassed where you appoint lawyers as soon as you market your property and ask them to collate the leasehold documentation needed by the buyers lawyers.
    • A minority of Plumstead leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, it would be prudent to place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. The 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 lawyers.
  • If there is a history of any disputes with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are settled prior to the flat being marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where there is an ongoing dispute. You may have to bite the bullet and pay any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to present the dispute as over as opposed to ongoing.
  • If you hold a share in a the freehold, you should make sure that you are holding the original share document. Organising a re-issued share certificate can be a time consuming formality and frustrates many a Plumstead home move. If a duplicate share certificate is necessary, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (if applicable) for this sooner rather than later.
  • You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but it would be wise to double-check by asking your lawyers. A purchaser's lawyer will not be happy to advise their client to where the remaining number of years is under 80 years. It is therefore essential at an early stage that you identify whether the lease requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

    • I have tried to negotiate informally with with my landlord for a lease extension without success. Can a leaseholder make an application to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal? Can you recommend a Plumstead conveyancing firm to assist?

    Where there is a absentee freeholder or where there is disagreement 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 Leasehold Valuation Tribunal to determine the price.

    An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a Plumstead residence is 103a Footscray Road in January 2014. The tribunal determines that the premium payable for the extended lease should be £34,500 according to the expert witness valuation calculation This case related to 1 flat.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Plumstead