Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in West Hampstead:

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Top Five Questions relating to West Hampstead leasehold conveyancing

I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in West Hampstead. Before diving in I want to be sure as to the remaining lease term.

Assuming the lease is registered - and most are in West Hampstead - 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.

Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my garden apartment in West Hampstead.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just had a half-yearly service charge demand – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

The sensible thing to do is pay 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 unless 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 am a negotiator for a reputable estate agent office in West Hampstead where we have witnessed a number of flat sales jeopardised due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received conflicting advice from local West Hampstead conveyancing solicitors. Can you shed some light as to whether the vendor of a flat can initiate 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 start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the buyer can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

Alternatively, it may be possible to agree the lease extension with the freeholder 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.

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in West Hampstead with the purpose of speeding up the sale process?

  • Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in West Hampstead can be bypassed if you instruct lawyers as soon as you market your property and ask them to collate the leasehold documentation needed by the buyers lawyers.
  • In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s approval? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? West Hampstead leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or addition of wooden flooring calls for a licence from the Landlord acquiescing to such works. Should you dont have the paperwork in place do not communicate with the landlord without checking with your lawyer in the first instance.
  • Some West Hampstead leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this is the case, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. The bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is financially capable of paying the yearly 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 actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their lawyers.
  • If you have had conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved prior to the flat being put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where there is a current dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to pay 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 will still have to reveal details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to present the dispute as historic as opposed to unresolved.
  • If you hold a share in a the freehold, you should make sure that you are holding the original share certificate. Arranging a replacement share certificate can be a time consuming formality and frustrates many a West Hampstead home move. Where a reissued share is required, do contact the company officers or managing agents (if relevant) for this as soon as possible.

    • We have reached the end of our tether in seeking a lease extension in West Hampstead. Can this matter be resolved via the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal?

    in cases where there is a absentee landlord or if there is dispute about what the lease extension should cost, under the relevant statutes it is possible to make an application to the LVT to judgment on the sum to be paid.

    An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a West Hampstead flat is Flat A 372 Cricklewood Lane in January 2013. The Tribunal decided that the premium for the extended lease should be £5,750.00 and that the terms of the new lease should be those set out in annex to the decsion This case affected 1 flat.

    When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in West Hampstead what are the most common lease defects?

    There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in West Hampstead. Most leases are individual and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain sections are not included. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

    • Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the property
    • Insurance obligations
    • Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
    • Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

    A defective lease will likely cause problems when trying to sell a property primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Barclays , Leeds Building Society, and Platform Home Loans Ltd all have express conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is problematic they may refuse to grant the mortgage, forcing the purchaser to pull out.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in West Hampstead