Recently asked questions relating to West Kensington leasehold conveyancing
I've found a house that seems to meet my requirements, at a reasonable figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have just discovered that the title is leasehold as opposed to freehold. I am assuming that there are particular concerns buying a leasehold house in West Kensington. Conveyancing lawyers have are soon to be instructed. Will my lawyers set out the implications of buying a leasehold house in West Kensington ?
The majority of houses in West Kensington are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can assist with the conveyancing process. We note that you are buying in West Kensington so you should seriously consider looking for a West Kensington conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they are used to transacting on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. Being a leaseholder you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions for example obtaining the freeholder’spermission to carry out changes to the property. You may also be required to pay a maintenance charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the property is part of an estate. Your lawyer should advise you fully on all the issues.
My wife and I purchased a leasehold flat in West Kensington. Conveyancing and Leeds Building Society mortgage are in place. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the freehold. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1998. The conveyancing practitioner in West Kensington who previously acted has long since retired.Any advice?
The first thing you should do is contact the Land Registry to be sure that this person is in fact the new freeholder. There is no need to instruct a West Kensington conveyancing lawyer to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for £3. You should note that regardless, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.
I am employed by a long established estate agent office in West Kensington where we have experienced a few flat sales jeopardised due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received contradictory information from local West Kensington conveyancing solicitors. Could you clarify whether the owner of a flat can instigate the lease extension formalities for the buyer?
As long as the seller has been the owner 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 buyer can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or simultaneously with completion of the sale.
An alternative approach is to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord 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.
What are your top tips when it comes to choosing a West Kensington conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?
When appointing a property lawyer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a West Kensington conveyancing firm) it is most important that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We suggested that you talk with several firms including non West Kensington conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions could be useful:
- If the firm is not ALEP accredited then why not?
If all goes to plan we aim to complete the sale of our £425000 flat in West Kensington on Tuesday in a week. The managing agents has quoted £384 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and previous years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge such fees for a leasehold conveyance in West Kensington?
West Kensington conveyancing on leasehold flats normally requires the buyer’s lawyer submitting questions for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is not legally bound to respond to these enquiries the majority will be content to do so. They are at liberty invoice a reasonable administration fee for responding to questions or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average costs for the information that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some situations it exceeds £800. The administration charge demanded by the landlord must be accompanied by a synopsis of entitlements and obligations in respect of administration charges, without which the charge is not strictly payable. Reality however dictates that you have no choice but to pay whatever is demanded should you wish to sell the property.
I have given up trying to purchase the freehold in West Kensington. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal adjudicate on premiums?
in cases where there is a missing freeholder 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 assess the premium.
An example of a Lease Extension decision for a West Kensington flat is 93 Oakwood Court in June 2010. the LVT determined that the premium to be paid for the new lease was £492,083, This case was in relation to 1 flat. The the unexpired term as at the valuation date was 37.79 years.
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