Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in West Heath:

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Sample questions relating to West Heath leasehold conveyancing

Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in West Heath. Before diving in I would like to find out the remaining lease term.

If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and 99.9% are in West Heath - 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.

Planning to sign contracts shortly on a ground floor flat in West Heath. Conveyancing solicitors inform me that they report fully on Monday. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in West Heath should include some of the following:

  • The total extent of the premises. This will be the apartment itself but may include a loft or cellar if appropriate.
  • Defining your rights in respect of common areas in the building.E.G., does the lease contain a right of way over an accessway or hallways?
  • Whether the lease restricts you from renting out the flat, or having a home office for business
  • You should be told what constitutes a Nuisance in the lease
  • Repair and maintenance of the flat
  • The landlord’s rights to access the flat you be made aware that your landlord has rights of access and I know how much notice s/he must provide.
  • Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your property and do you know what it means in practice? For details of the information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in West Heath please enquire of your conveyancer in ahead of your conveyancing in West Heath

    • I have just started marketing my 2 bed flat in West Heath.Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon but I have just received a half-yearly maintenance charge invoice – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

    It best that you 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 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 work for a reputable estate agency in West Heath where we have witnessed a number of flat sales jeopardised as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given inconsistent advice from local West Heath conveyancing solicitors. Can you confirm whether the seller of a flat can instigate the lease extension process for the buyer?

    As long as the seller has owned the lease 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 can avoid having to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done prior to, or simultaneously with completion of the sale.

    An alternative approach is 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 top tips for leasehold conveyancing in West Heath from the perspective of saving time on the sale process?

    • Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in West Heath can be bypassed where you appoint lawyers as soon as you market your property and request that they start to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers conveyancers.
    • In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s permission? Have you, for example laid down wooden flooring? West Heath leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or addition of wooden flooring require a licence issued by the Landlord acquiescing to such alterations. Where you dont have the paperwork to hand do not communicate with the landlord without checking with your conveyancer before hand.
  • A minority of West Heath leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this is the case, it would be prudent to notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. Any bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are 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 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 make sure that you have the original share document. Organising a re-issued share certificate can be a time consuming formality and slows down many a West Heath home move. If a duplicate share certificate is needed, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (if relevant) for this at the earliest opportunity.
  • You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but it would be advisable double-check via your lawyers. A purchaser's lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to to exchange contracts if the lease term is less than 80 years. It is therefore important at an as soon as possible that you identify whether the lease requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

    • Following years of correspondence we simply can't agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in West Heath. Does the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal have jurisdiction to calculate the appropriate figures?

    in cases where there is a missing landlord or if there is dispute 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 calculate the amount due.

    An example of a Lease Extension decision for a West Heath flat 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 was in relation to 13 flats. The unexpired lease term was 76 years.