Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in West Brompton:

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Any conveyancing solicitor can theoretically handle your leasehold conveyancing in West Brompton, your mortgage provider may unwilling to work with them if the firm are not on their list of approved solicitors for conveyancing

West Brompton leasehold conveyancing Example Support Desk Enquiries

I am intending to rent out my leasehold apartment in West Brompton. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask him. Is permission from the freeholder required?

Some leases for properties in West Brompton do contain a provision to say that subletting is only allowed with permission. 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.

Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only Seventy years unexpired on my lease in West Brompton. I now want to extend my lease but my freeholder 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 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. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have made all reasonable attempts to find the freeholder. In some cases a specialist would be helpful to conduct investigations and prepare an expert document to be used as proof that the freeholder can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer in relation to investigating the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court overseeing West Brompton.

I have just started marketing my garden flat in West Brompton.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just received a half-yearly maintenance charge invoice – what should I do?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should clear the invoice 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 management companies 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. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in West Brompton from the perspective of saving time on the sale process?

  • Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in West Brompton can be bypassed if you appoint lawyers the minute you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers solicitors.
  • The majority landlords or managing agents in West Brompton levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should discover the actual amount of the charges. The management information sought as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. 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 West Brompton.
  • If there is a history of conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is essential that these are resolved prior to the flat being marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be nervous about purchasing a flat where there is an ongoing dispute. You may need to swallow your pride and pay any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal details of the dispute to the buyers, but it is better to reveal the dispute as historic as opposed to ongoing.
  • If you are supposed to have a share in the Management Company, you should make sure that you hold the original share certificate. Organising a duplicate share certificate can be a lengthy formality and delays many a West Brompton home move. Where a new share certificate is required, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (where applicable) for this at the earliest opportunity.
  • You may think that you are aware of the number of years left on your lease but it would be wise to double-check by asking your solicitors. A buyer’s lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to where the remaining number of years is under 80 years. It is therefore essential at an early stage that you identify whether the lease term for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

    • Completion in due on our sale of a £500000 apartment in West Brompton next Monday . The managing agents has quoted £384 for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and 3 years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge an administration fee for a leasehold conveyance in West Brompton?

    West Brompton conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes usually requires the buyer’s solicitor sending questions for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to answer such questions most will be willing to assist. They are at liberty invoice a reasonable charge for answering questions or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average costs for the paperwork that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some cases it is in excess of £800. The management information fee invoiced by the landlord must be accompanied by a summary of entitlements and obligations in respect of administration fees, otherwise the invoice is not strictly payable. In reality one has little option but to pay whatever is requested of you should you wish to exchange contracts with the buyer.

    I inherited a first floor flat in West Brompton. Given that I can not reach agreement with the freeholder, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal determine the amount due for a lease extension?

    Where there is a missing landlord or if there is disagreement about what the lease extension should cost, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) to decide the price.

    An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement case for a West Brompton property is 5 Wetherby Gardens in June 2014. the Tribunal concluded that the price to be paid for the freehold of the property was £2,369,452. This case related to 5 flats. The unexpired lease term was 38.98 years.