Due to exchange soon on a leasehold property in Southborough. Conveyancing solicitors have said that they will have a report out to me within the next couple of days. What should I be looking out for?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Southborough should include some of the following:

• Does the lease require carpeting throughout thus preventing wood flooring?

An explanation as to the provision in the lease to pay service charges - with regard to both the building, and the more general rights a leaseholder has

Whether your lease has a provision for a sinking fund?

You should have a good understanding of the insurance provisions

Repair and maintenance of the flat

The landlord’s obligations to repair and maintain the building. It is important that you know who is responsible for the repair and maintenance of every part of the building

Responsibility for repairing the window frames For a comprehensive list of information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Southborough please ask your lawyer in ahead of your conveyancing in Southborough

I've recently bought a leasehold flat in Southborough. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

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).

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Southborough with the purpose of speeding up the sale process?

• Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Southborough can be bypassed if you instruct lawyers the minute your agents start marketing the property and ask them to collate the leasehold information which will be required by the purchasers’ conveyancers.
• Many freeholders or Management Companies in Southborough levy fees for providing management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the actual amount of the charges. The management information sought on or before finding a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The average time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most frequent cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in Southborough.

In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s consent? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Southborough leases often stipulate that internal structural changes or laying down wooden flooring calls for a licence issued by the Landlord consenting to such works. If you dont have the approvals in place do not contact the landlord without checking with your solicitor in the first instance.

A minority of Southborough 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 financial (bank) and professional references. Any bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are 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 purchasers or their lawyers.

You may think that you are aware of the number of years left on your lease but it would be advisable verify this by asking your lawyers. A buyer’s conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to to exchange contracts if the remaining number of years is less than 75 years. It is therefore essential at an early stage that you consider whether the lease term for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

Completion in due on our sale of a £450000 flat in Southborough in just under a week. The management company has quoted £408 for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and 3 years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Southborough?

Southborough conveyancing on leasehold flats ordinarily involves administration charges raised by landlords agents :

• Completing pre-exchange questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Southborough
• Copies of the building insurance and schedule
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your conveyancer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Southborough leasehold premises is £350. For Southborough conveyancing transactions it is customary for the seller to pay for these costs. The landlord or their agents are under no legal obligation to answer such questions most will be willing to do so - albeit often at exorbitant prices where the fees bear little relation to the work involved. Unfortunately there is no law that requires fixed charges for administrative tasks. Neither is there any legal time frame by which they are required to provide answers.

I have had difficulty in trying to purchase the freehold in Southborough. Can this matter be resolved via the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal?

You certainly can. We are happy to put you in touch with a Southborough conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension case for a Southborough premises is 1 Southlands Court Southlands Road in September 2013. The Leasehold Valuation Tribunal determined that the premium to be paid by the tenant on the grant of a new lease, in accordance with section 56 and Schedule 13 of the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 was £30,541 This case related to 1 flat. The remaining number of years on the lease was 50.57 years.

What makes a Southborough lease unmortgageable?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Southborough. All leases are individual and drafting errors can sometimes mean that certain sections are erroneous. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain elements of the premises
• Insurance obligations
• A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
• Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

A defective lease can cause issues when trying to sell a property as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Barclays , Norwich and Peterborough Building Society, and Aldermore all have express conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to grant the mortgage, obliging the buyer to pull out.