Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Melbourne:

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Leasehold conveyancing in Melbourne is more complex than freehold. Your home move will be smoother where you choose a lawyer with a wealth of experience of leasehold conveyancing in Melbourne and across next step up in loc. The lawyers we recommend have been approved by your lender so use our search tool to check.

Frequently asked questions relating to Melbourne leasehold conveyancing

I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Melbourne. Before diving in I would like to find out the number of years remaining on the lease.

Assuming the lease is registered - and most are in Melbourne - 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.

I only have 62 years left on my flat in Melbourne. I now wish to extend my lease but my freeholder is absent. What options are available to me?

On the basis that you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be granted an extra 90 years by the Court. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have used your best endeavours to locate the freeholder. For most situations an enquiry agent would be helpful to try and locate and to produce a report which can be used as evidence that the freeholder can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a property lawyer both on devolving into the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Melbourne.

Planning to complete next month on a basement flat in Melbourne. Conveyancing lawyers assured me that they report fully next week. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

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

  • Whether the lease restricts you from letting out the flat, or working from home
  • You should be told what constitutes a Nuisance in the lease
  • 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
  • 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
  • What you can do if a neighbour is in violation of a provision in their lease? For details of the information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Melbourne please enquire of your lawyer in advance of your conveyancing in Melbourne

    • I have just started marketing my ground floor apartment in Melbourne.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just had a half-yearly service charge invoice – what should I do?

    The sensible thing to do is 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 management companies 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.

    In relation to leasehold conveyancing in Melbourne what are the most frequent lease defects?

    There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Melbourne. Most leases are individual and legal mistakes in the legal wording can result in certain clauses 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 building
    • 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

    You will encounter a problem when selling your property if you have a defective lease as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Lloyds TSB Bank, Norwich and Peterborough Building Society, and Platform Home Loans Ltd all have express requirements 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 withdraw.

    Melbourne Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Queries before buying

      Are there any major works in the planning that could increase the maintenance costs? Does the lease include onerous restrictions? This information is helpful as a) areas can cause problems for the building as the common areas may begin to deteriorate where maintenance remain unpaid b) if the leaseholders have an issue with the managing agents you will need to have all the details

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Melbourne