Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Ponders End:

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When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Ponders End, you will need to chose a conveyancing lawyer with leasehold experience. Whether your lender is to be Halifax, Yorkshire Building Society or Bradford & Bingley be sure to choose a lawyer on their approved list. Feel free to use our search tool

Ponders End leasehold conveyancing Example Support Desk Enquiries

Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Ponders End. Before I set the wheels in motion I want to be sure as to the remaining lease term.

If the lease is registered - and 99.9% are in Ponders End - 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.

I have just appointed agents to market my 2 bed apartment in Ponders End.Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon but I have just received a quarterly service charge demand – Do I pay up?

The sensible thing to do is discharge 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 management companies 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. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

I work for a reputable estate agency in Ponders End where we have experienced a number of leasehold sales jeopardised due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given contradictory information from local Ponders End conveyancing solicitors. Could you clarify whether the seller of a flat can start 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 can avoid having to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or at the same time as 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 purchaser.

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Ponders End with the purpose of expediting the sale process?

  • Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Ponders End can be bypassed where you appoint lawyers the minute you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold information needed by the buyers solicitors.
  • Many landlords or Management Companies in Ponders End charge for providing management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the actual amount of the charges. The management information can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus reducing delays. The typical amount of time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most common reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Ponders End.
  • Some Ponders End leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is financially capable of paying 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 solicitors.
  • If you have had conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are settled before the property is put on the market. The buyers and their solicitors will be nervous about purchasing a property where there is an ongoing dispute. You may need to swallow your pride and pay any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal details of the dispute to the buyers, but it is better to reveal the dispute as historic as opposed to unsettled.
  • You may think that you are aware of the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be advisable verify this by asking your lawyers. A purchaser's lawyer will not be happy to advise their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the remaining number of years is less than 75 years. It is therefore essential at an as soon as possible that you consider whether the lease term for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale.

    • My wife and I have hit a brick wall in trying to purchase the freehold in Ponders End. Can this matter be resolved via the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal?

    if there is a missing landlord or if 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 determine the amount due.

    An example of a Vesting Order and Purchase of freehold case for a Ponders End flat is Ground Floor Flat 4A Baronet Road in February 2010. Following a vesting order by Edmonton County Court on 23rd December 2008 (case number 8ED064) the Tribunal decided that the price that the Applicant for the freehold interest should pay is £8,689.00 This case related to 2 flats. The the unexpired term as at the valuation date was 80.01 years.

    What are the common defects that you come across in leases for Ponders End properties?

    Leasehold conveyancing in Ponders End is not unique. Most leases is drafted differently and legal mistakes in the legal wording can result in certain provisions are missing. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

    • Repairing obligations to or maintain elements of the premises
    • A duty to insure the building
    • 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 encounter 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. Halifax, Leeds Building Society, and Nottingham Building Society all have express requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to grant the mortgage, forcing the purchaser to pull out.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Ponders End