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When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Stoke Newington, you will need to chose a conveyancing solicitor with leasehold experience. Whether your lender is to be Halifax, RBS or Bradford & Bingley make sure you find a lawyer on their approved list. Feel free to use our search tool

Questions and Answers: Stoke Newington leasehold conveyancing

I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Stoke Newington. Before I set the wheels in motion I would like to find out the number of years remaining on the lease.

If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and 99.9% are in Stoke Newington - then the leasehold title will always include the short particulars 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 only have Seventy years left on my flat in Stoke Newington. I need to extend my lease but my freeholder is absent. What options are available to me?

If you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be extended by the Court. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have made all reasonable attempts to track down the landlord. For most situations an enquiry agent should be useful to try and locate and to produce a report which can be used as proof that the landlord can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a conveyancer in relation to devolving into the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court overseeing Stoke Newington.

Planning to complete next month on a garden flat in Stoke Newington. Conveyancing solicitors inform me that they report fully within the next couple of days. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

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

  • Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, landlord
  • Defining your legal entitlements in respect of the communal areas in the building.E.G., does the lease permit a right of way over a path or hallways?
  • Does the lease prohibit 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
  • Repair and maintenance of the flat
  • 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.
  • Responsibility for repairing the window frames For a comprehensive list of information to be included in your report on your leasehold property in Stoke Newington please enquire of your lawyer in ahead of your conveyancing in Stoke Newington

    • I work for a reputable estate agent office in Stoke Newington where we see a few flat sales derailed due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received contradictory information from local Stoke Newington conveyancing solicitors. Could you clarify whether the seller of a flat can instigate the lease extension process for the buyer?

    Provided that the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the buyer can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. 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 buyer.

    Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Stoke Newington with the intention of saving time on the sale process?

    • A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Stoke Newington can be bypassed where you instruct lawyers as soon as you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold information needed by the buyers solicitors.
    • If you have carried out any alterations to the residence would they have required Landlord’s consent? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Stoke Newington leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or laying down wooden flooring necessitate a licence issued by the Landlord approving such works. If you dont have the approvals to hand do not contact the landlord without contacting your solicitor first.
  • Some Stoke Newington leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, it would be prudent to notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. Any bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are financially capable of paying 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 service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their lawyers.
  • If you hold a share in a the freehold, you should make sure that you have the original share certificate. Arranging a re-issued share certificate is often a lengthy formality and delays many a Stoke Newington conveyancing deal. Where a duplicate share is needed, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (where relevant) for this sooner rather than later.
  • You may think that you are aware of the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be advisable double-check by asking your solicitors. A buyer’s lawyer 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 important 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 attempted and failed to negotiate with my landlord to extend my lease without success. Can one apply to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal? Can you recommend a Stoke Newington conveyancing firm to assist?

    Where there is a missing landlord or where there is dispute about the premium for a lease extension, under the relevant legislation it is possible to make an application to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) to make a decision on the premium.

    An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Stoke Newington premises is Lower Flat 16A Beatty Road in September 2012. The premium payable was £13,577. The terms of the lease has been agreed between the Applicants and the First Respondent and the Tribunal did not seek to disturb that agreement. This case related to 1 flat.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Stoke Newington