Guaranteed fixed fees for Leasehold Conveyancing in The Hale

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Questions and Answers: The Hale leasehold conveyancing

I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in The Hale. Before I set the wheels in motion I want to be sure as to the number of years remaining on the lease.

If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and most are in The Hale - 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.

Jane (my partner) and I may need to sub-let our The Hale basement flat temporarily due to taking a sabbatical. We used a The Hale conveyancing practice in 2003 but they have since shut and we did not think at the time get any guidance as to whether the lease prohibits the subletting of the flat. How do we find out?

A small minority of properties in The Hale do contain a provision to say that subletting is only permitted with prior consent from the landlord. The landlord cannot unreasonably refuse but, in such cases, they would need to review references. Experience dictates that problems are usually caused by unsatisfactory tenants rather than owner-occupiers and for that reason you can expect the freeholder to take up the references and consider them carefully before granting consent.

I own a leasehold house in The Hale. Conveyancing and Skipton Building Society mortgage are in place. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1991. The conveyancing practitioner in The Hale who acted for me is not around.Any advice?

First contact HMLR to make sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. There is no need to incur the fees of a The Hale conveyancing lawyer to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. You should note that regardless, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

What are your top tips when it comes to finding a The Hale conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a property lawyer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a The Hale conveyancing practice) it is imperative that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We advise that you talk with two or three firms including non The Hale conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions could be helpful:

  • How experienced is the practice with lease extension legislation?
  • What are the costs for lease extension work?

    • Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in The Hale with the intention of speeding up the sale process?

    • A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in The Hale can be avoided if you instruct lawyers the minute your agents start marketing the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the purchasers’ conveyancers.
    • Many freeholders or Management Companies in The Hale charge for providing management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should discover the actual amount of the charges. The management information sought on or before finding a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The typical amount of time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most usual cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in The Hale.
  • If you have carried out any alterations to the property would they have required Landlord’s approval? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Most leases in The Hale state that internal structural alterations or installing wooden flooring necessitate a licence from the Landlord acquiescing to such alterations. Should you fail to have the paperwork in place you should not contact the landlord without checking with your lawyer in advance.
  • Some The Hale leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, it would be prudent to notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. Any bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are able to meet 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 are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should ensure that you are holding the original share certificate. Arranging a duplicate share certificate is often a lengthy process and delays many a The Hale conveyancing deal. If a duplicate share is required, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (where relevant) for this sooner rather than later.

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

    in cases where there is a absentee freeholder or if there is disagreement about the premium for a lease extension, under the relevant statutes you can apply to the LVT to make a decision on the premium.

    An example of a Lease Extension decision for a The Hale property is 20 Orchard Court Stonegrove in June 2009. The tribunal decided that a premium of £11,040 should be payable for the new lease This case affected 1 flat. The the number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 71.55 years.