Recently asked questions relating to Temple leasehold conveyancing
I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Temple. Before I set the wheels in motion I want to be sure as to the unexpired term of the lease.
If the lease is registered - and 99.9% are in Temple - 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.
Last month I purchased a leasehold property in Temple. 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 owner 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 be sure 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 Temple from the perspective of expediting the sale process?
- Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Temple can be bypassed where you get in touch lawyers the minute your agents start marketing the property and ask them to put together the leasehold information needed by the purchasers’ conveyancers.
- A minority of Temple leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, you should notify your estate agents 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 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 purchasers or their lawyers.
- If you have had any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are resolved before the property is marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be concerned about purchasing a flat where there is a current dispute. You may have to bite the bullet and discharge any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose details of the dispute to the buyers, but it is better to present the dispute as over rather than unresolved.
- If you hold a share in a the Management Company, you should make sure that you are holding the original share certificate. Arranging a replacement share certificate can be a lengthy formality and slows down many a Temple home move. Where a duplicate share is necessary, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (where relevant) for this as soon as possible.
- 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 solicitors. A purchaser's conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the remaining number of years is under 80 years. In the circumstances it is essential at an early stage that you consider whether the lease for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale.
Completion in due on the disposal of our £ 200000 apartment in Temple in 5 days. The freeholder has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and 3 years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Temple?
Temple conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes nine out of ten times results in administration charges raised by management companies :
- Completing pre-contract questions
- Where consent is required before sale in Temple
- Supplying insurance information
- Deeds of covenant upon sale
- Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale
After years of dialogue we are unable to agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Temple. Can we issue an application to the Residential Property Tribunal Service?
Where there is a missing freeholder or if there is disagreement about what the lease extension should cost, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 it is possible to make an application to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) to calculate the amount due.
An example of a Lease Extension case for a Temple residence is Flat 89 Trinity Court Grays Inn Road in February 2013. the Tribunal found that the premium to be paid by the tenant on the grant of a new lease, in accordance with section 56 and Schedule 13 to the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 should be £36,229. This case related to 1 flat. The the number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 66.8 years.
Are there common problems that you witness in leases for Temple properties?
Leasehold conveyancing in Temple is not unique. All leases are unique and legal mistakes in the legal wording can result in certain provisions are missing. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:
- A provision to repair to or maintain parts of the building
- A duty to insure the building
- 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 will likely cause issues when trying to sell a property primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. National Westminster Bank, Bank of Scotland, and Barclays Direct all have express conveyancing instructions 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, obliging the purchaser to pull out.
I own a 1 bedroom flat in Temple, conveyancing formalities finalised in 1995. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Corresponding flats in Temple with an extended lease are worth £219,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £60 yearly. The lease ceases on 21st October 2080
With just 54 years remaining on your lease we estimate the premium for your lease extension to be between £32,300 and £37,400 plus costs.
The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to supply a more accurate figure without more detailed investigations. Do not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt additional issues that need to be considered and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action based on this information without first getting professional advice.