Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Rayners Lane:

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While any conveyancing practice can theoretically deal with your leasehold conveyancing in Rayners Lane, your mortgage provider may not be willing to work with them if the firm are not on their list of approved solicitors for conveyancing

Rayners Lane leasehold conveyancing: Q and A’s

Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my basement flat in Rayners Lane.Conveyancing has not commenced but I have just received a yearly maintenance charge invoice – 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.

I own a leasehold flat in Rayners Lane. Conveyancing and Clydesdale mortgage organised. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1998. The conveyancing practitioner in Rayners Lane who acted for me is not around.Do I pay?

The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to be sure that this person is in fact the new freeholder. You do not need to incur the fees of a Rayners Lane conveyancing firm to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for £3. Rest assured that regardless, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

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

If you are instructing a conveyancer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Rayners Lane conveyancing practice) it is essential that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We suggested that you make enquires with several firms including non Rayners Lane conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be of use:

  • How experienced is the firm with lease extension legislation?
  • Can they put you in touch with client in Rayners Lane who can give a testimonial?

    • Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Rayners Lane from the perspective of speeding up the sale process?

    • A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Rayners Lane can be bypassed if you appoint lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information needed by the buyers solicitors.
    • The majority freeholders or Management Companies in Rayners Lane charge for supplying management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the fee that they propose to charge. The management information sought as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most common reason for frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Rayners Lane.
  • A minority of Rayners Lane leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are 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 you have had any disputes with your landlord or managing agents it is essential that these are settled before the property is marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where a dispute is ongoing. You may need to swallow your pride and pay any arrears of service charge or resolve 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 details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to reveal the dispute as historic as opposed to ongoing.
  • If you have the benefit of shareholding in the freehold, you should ensure that you hold the original share certificate. Obtaining a new share certificate is often a lengthy process and frustrates many a Rayners Lane conveyancing transaction. If a duplicate share certificate is required, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (where relevant) for this as soon as possible.

    • Completion in due on the sale of our £425000 flat in Rayners Lane next Friday . The management company has quoted £324 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and previous years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge an administration fee for a leasehold conveyance in Rayners Lane?

    Rayners Lane conveyancing on leasehold apartments normally involves the purchaser’s conveyancer sending questions for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is not legally bound to answer such questions the majority will be content to do so. They are entitled invoice a reasonable charge for answering enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average costs for the paperwork that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some cases it exceeds £800. The administration charge invoiced by the landlord must be accompanied by a synopsis of rights and obligations in respect of administration fees, otherwise the charge is technically not due. In reality one has no choice but to pay whatever is demanded should you wish to complete the sale of your home.

    Having spent months of dialogue we are unable to agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Rayners Lane. Can we issue an application to the Residential Property Tribunal Service?

    You certainly can. We can put you in touch with a Rayners Lane conveyancing firm who can help.

    An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Rayners Lane premises is GFF 1 Holyrood Avenue in May 2014. The Tenant wished to acquire a new (extended) lease and applied to the Willesden County Court who granted a vesting order on 20* March2013. The Tribunal decied that the premium to be paid was £9,062 This case related to 1 flat. The unexpired lease term was 79 years.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Rayners Lane