Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in West Heath:

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

Recently asked questions relating to West Heath leasehold conveyancing

Looking forward to exchange soon on a leasehold property in West Heath. Conveyancing solicitors assured me that they will have a report out to me tomorrow. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

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

  • How long the lease is You should be advised as what happens when the lease expires, and aware of the importance of not letting the lease term falling below eighty years
  • Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, freeholder
  • Do you need to have carpet in the flat or are you allowed wood flooring?
  • Does the lease prevent you from letting out the property, or working from home
  • I don't know whether the lease allows me to alter or improve anything in the flat - you should know whether it applies to all alterations or just structural alteration, and whether consent is required
  • Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your premises and do you know what it means in practice?
  • Responsibility for repairing the window frames For a comprehensive list of information to be included in your report on your leasehold property in West Heath please ask your conveyancer in advance of your conveyancing in West Heath

    • Back In 2005, I bought a leasehold house in West Heath. Conveyancing and Birmingham Midshires mortgage are in place. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1991. The conveyancing practitioner in West Heath who acted for me is not around.Any advice?

    First make enquiries of the Land Registry to make sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. It is not necessary to instruct a West Heath conveyancing firm to do this as it can be done on-line for £3. Rest assured that regardless, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

    I work for a reputable estate agent office in West Heath where we see a number of flat sales jeopardised as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given conflicting advice from local West Heath conveyancing solicitors. Could you confirm 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 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 need not have to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed 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 offer any advice when it comes to appointing a West Heath conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?

    If you are instructing a property lawyer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a West Heath conveyancing practice) it is essential that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We suggested that you speak with two or three firms including non West Heath conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be helpful:

    • What volume of lease extensions has the firm carried out in West Heath in the last year?
  • Can they put you in touch with client in West Heath who can give a testimonial?

    • Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in West Heath from the point of view of saving time on the sale process?

    • A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in West Heath can be bypassed where you get in touch lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information needed by the buyers lawyers.
    • Many landlords or Management Companies in West Heath levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should discover the fee that they propose to charge. The management information can be applied for on or before finding 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 reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in West Heath.
  • If you have carried out any alterations to the property would they have required Landlord’s approval? Have you, for example laid down wooden flooring? West Heath leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or laying down wooden flooring necessitate a licence issued by the Landlord approving such works. Where you dont have the consents in place you should not contact the landlord without checking with your solicitor first.
  • A minority of West Heath leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this is the case, you should 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 actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their solicitors.
  • If there is a history of any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are settled prior to the flat being marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be warry about purchasing a property where a dispute is unresolved. You may have to bite the bullet and discharge any arrears of service charge or settle 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 purchasers, but it is better to present the dispute as over rather than unresolved.

    • I have tried to negotiate informally with with my landlord to extend my lease without getting anywhere. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal adjudicate on such issues? Can you recommend a West Heath conveyancing firm to help?

    Most certainly. We can put you in touch with a West Heath conveyancing firm who can help.

    An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a West Heath property 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 affected 13 flats. The remaining number of years on the lease was 76 years.