Leasehold Conveyancing in West Heath - Get a Quote from the leasehold experts approved by your lender

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West Heath leasehold conveyancing: Q and A’s

I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in West Heath. Before diving in I want to be sure as to the remaining lease term.

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

Expecting to complete next month on a studio apartment in West Heath. Conveyancing solicitors assured me that they are sending me a report 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:

  • You should be sent a copy of the lease
  • The physical extent of the property. This will be the flat itself but may include a loft or basement if appropriate.
  • Does the lease prohibit wood flooring?
  • An explanation as to the provision in the lease to pay service charges - with regard to both the building, and the more general rights a leaseholder has
  • Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your property and do you know what it means in practice?
  • Responsibility for repairing the window frames
  • What the implications are if you breach a clause of your lease? For details of the information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in West Heath please enquire of your lawyer in ahead of your conveyancing in West Heath

    • I own a leasehold house in West Heath. Conveyancing and Barclays Direct mortgage are in place. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1994. The conveyancing practitioner in West Heath who acted for me is not around.Do I pay?

    First contact the Land Registry to be sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is indeed the new freeholder. There is no need to instruct a West Heath conveyancing firm to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. Rest assured that regardless, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

    I am attracted to a two flats in West Heath which have about 50 years unexpired on the leases. Will this present a problem?

    A lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the premises for a prescribed time frame. As the lease gets shorter the marketability of the lease deteriorate and it becomes more expensive to acquire a lease extension. For this reason it is advisable to increase the term of the lease. More often than not it is difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease as mortgage companies may be reluctant to lend money on such properties. Lease extension can be a protracted process. We advise that you seek professional assistance from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this arena

    Can you offer any advice when it comes to choosing a West Heath conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

    If you are instructing a property lawyer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a West Heath conveyancing firm) it is imperative that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We advise that you speak with several firms including non West Heath conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions could be of use:

    • How many lease extensions has the firm completed in West Heath in the last year?
  • What are the legal fees for lease extension conveyancing?

    • Following months of correspondence we cannot 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?

    if there is a missing freeholder or where there is disagreement about what the lease extension should cost, under the relevant legislation it is possible to make an application to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal to assess the amount due.

    An example of a Lease Extension decision for a West Heath premises 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 term was 76 years.