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Thamesmead leasehold conveyancing: Q and A’s

I only have Seventy years remaining on my flat in Thamesmead. I need to extend my lease but my landlord is can not be found. What options are available to me?

On the basis that you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be granted an extra 90 years by the Court. You will be obliged to prove that you or your lawyers have done all that could be expected to track down the freeholder. In some cases an enquiry agent should be helpful to try and locate and prepare an expert document to be accepted by the court as evidence that the landlord can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a property lawyer both on investigating the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court overseeing Thamesmead.

Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my 2 bed apartment in Thamesmead.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just received a half-yearly maintenance charge invoice – what should I do?

The sensible thing to do is clear the service charge 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 until 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. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

I today plan to offer on a house that appears to be perfect, at a great figure which is making it more attractive. I have subsequently been informed that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are issues purchasing a leasehold house in Thamesmead. Conveyancing solicitors have not yet been appointed. Will they explain the issues?

Most houses in Thamesmead are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can help the conveyancing process. it is apparent that you are buying in Thamesmead so you should seriously consider looking for a Thamesmead conveyancing practitioner and check that they are used to dealing with leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the unexpired lease term. Being a leaseholder you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions such as obtaining the freeholder’spermission to conduct alterations. It may be necessary to pay a service charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the property is part of an estate. Your conveyancer will report to you on the legal implications.

I work for a reputable estate agent office in Thamesmead where we have experienced a number of flat sales put at risk due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given conflicting advice from local Thamesmead conveyancing solicitors. Could you shed some light as to whether the owner of a flat can commence the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the proposed purchaser need not have to wait 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed before, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.

Alternatively, it may be possible to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord 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.

We expect to complete the sale of our £125000 maisonette in Thamesmead in 5 days. The management company has quoted £360 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and previous years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in Thamesmead?

For the majority of leasehold sales in Thamesmead conveyancing will involve, questions about the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :

  • Addressing pre-exchange enquiries
  • Where consent is required before sale in Thamesmead
  • 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 solicitor will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Thamesmead leasehold property is £350. For Thamesmead 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 obliged to supply the information.

Following years of dialogue we cannot agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Thamesmead. Can we issue an application to the Residential Property Tribunal Service?

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

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Thamesmead residence is Various @ Colombus Square in January 2012. the Tribunal calculated the premiums to be paid for new leases for each of the flats in Mariners Walk to be £3822 and the premium to be paid for the new lease of 2 Knights Court to be £4439. This case related to 13 flats. The the unexpired term as at the valuation date was 76 years.

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Lease Extensions in Thamesmead