Vauxhall leasehold conveyancing: Q and A’s
I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Vauxhall. Before I get started I would like to find out the unexpired term of the lease.
If the lease is registered - and almost all are in Vauxhall - 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 flat in Vauxhall. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?
In a situation 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. However, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to ensure 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).
I am employed by a reputable estate agency in Vauxhall where we see a number of flat sales jeopardised as a result of short leases. I have received inconsistent advice from local Vauxhall conveyancing solicitors. Can you clarify whether the seller of a flat can commence the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?
As long as 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. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser can avoid having to wait 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or simultaneously with completion of the sale.
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 purchaser.
Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Vauxhall with the purpose of saving time on the sale process?
- A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Vauxhall can be bypassed where you get in touch lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information needed by the buyers representatives.
- The majority freeholders or managing agents in Vauxhall charge for supplying management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack can be applied for 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 frequent reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Vauxhall.
All being well we will complete the disposal of our £175000 apartment in Vauxhall next Thursday . The management company has quoted £384 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and 3 years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in Vauxhall?
Vauxhall conveyancing on leasehold apartments often involves the purchaser’s lawyer submitting questions for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is not legally bound to address these enquiries most will be content to assist. They are at liberty levy a reasonable administration fee for answering enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average fee for the information that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some transactions it exceeds £800. The management information fee invoiced by the landlord must be sent together with a summary of rights and obligations in respect of administration charges, otherwise the invoice is technically not due. Reality however dictates that one has no option but to pay whatever is requested of you should you wish to sell the property.
I inherited a ground-floor 1950’s flat in Vauxhall. Given that I can not reach agreement with the freeholder, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal determine the sum due for a lease extension?
if there is a absentee freeholder or where there is disagreement about what the lease extension should cost, under the relevant legislation you can apply to the LVT to decide the price.
An example of a Lease Extension case for a Vauxhall property is Flats 12A & 19, Evelyn Mansions Carlisle Place in June 2009. The Tribunal held that the price to be paid for the new lease of Flat 12A is £168,824, For the other flat the price was set at £169,110 This case related to 2 flats. The the number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 56 years.
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