Sample questions relating to Swiss Cottage leasehold conveyancing
I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Swiss Cottage. Before I get started I require certainty as to the unexpired term of the lease.
If the lease is registered - and 99.9% are in Swiss Cottage - 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.
My husband and I may need to rent out our Swiss Cottage garden flat temporarily due to taking a sabbatical. We used a Swiss Cottage conveyancing practice in 2004 but they have closed and we did not think at the time get any guidance as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?
The lease dictates relations between the freeholder and you the flat owner; specifically, it will indicate if subletting is banned, or permitted but only subject to certain caveats. The accepted inference is that if the lease contains no specific ban or restriction, subletting is permitted. The majority of leases in Swiss Cottage do not prevent strict prohibition on subletting – such a provision would adversely affect the market value the flat. In most cases there is simply a requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly sending a duplicate of the sublease.
Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only Sixty One years unexpired on my flat in Swiss Cottage. I need to extend my lease but my landlord is can not be found. What should I do?
If you qualify, 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 enable the lease to be extended by the magistrate. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you have used your best endeavours to find the lessor. On the whole a specialist would be useful to carry out a search and prepare a report to be accepted by the court as evidence that the landlord can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer both on proving the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing Swiss Cottage.
I am attracted to a two maisonettes in Swiss Cottage both have approximately 50 years remaining on the leases. Do I need to be concerned?
There are plenty of short leases in Swiss Cottage. The lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the premises for a prescribed time frame. As a lease shortens the marketability of the lease decreases and it becomes more expensive to acquire a lease extension. For this reason it is advisable to extend the lease term. Sometimes it is difficult to sell a property with a short lease because mortgage lenders may be reluctant to lend money on properties of this type. Lease extension can be a difficult process. We advise that you get professional assistance from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this area
If all goes to plan we aim to complete our sale of a £325000 garden flat in Swiss Cottage next week. The management company has quoted £300 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and 3 years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge an administration fee for a flat conveyance in Swiss Cottage?
Swiss Cottage conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes normally necessitates the buyer’s lawyer sending enquiries for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is not legally bound to respond to these enquiries most will be content to do so. They may invoice a reasonable administration fee for answering questions or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average fee for the paperwork that you are referring to is £350, in some situations it is in excess of £800. The management information fee invoiced by the landlord must be accompanied by a summary of rights and obligations in relation to administration charges, without which the invoice is technically not due. Reality however dictates that you have little choice but to pay whatever is requested of you should you wish to exchange contracts with the buyer.
I have tried to negotiate informally with with my landlord for a lease extension without any joy. Can a leaseholder make an application to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal? Can you recommend a Swiss Cottage conveyancing firm to assist?
Absolutely. We can put you in touch with a Swiss Cottage conveyancing firm who can help.
An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Swiss Cottage property is First Floor Flat 20 Fitzjohns Avenue in July 2014. the Tribunal decided that the premiums to be paid for new leases in respect of the Raised Ground Floor Flat and the First Floor Flat were to be calculated as: Raised Ground Floor: £765,175.14 First Floor: £601,617.77 This case was in relation to 2 flats. The the unexpired residue of the current lease was 16.83 and 16.43.
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