Experts for Leasehold Conveyancing in Meopham

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

Common questions relating to Meopham leasehold conveyancing

My fiance and I may need to sub-let our Meopham ground floor flat temporarily due to a career opportunity. We used a Meopham conveyancing practice in 2004 but they have closed and we did not have the foresight to seek any guidance as to whether the lease permits subletting. How do we find out?

Some leases for properties in Meopham do contain a provision to say that subletting is only permitted with prior consent from the landlord. The landlord cannot unreasonably refuse but, in such cases, they would need to see references. Experience dictates that problems are usually caused by unsatisfactory tenants rather than owner-occupiers and for that reason you can expect the freeholder to take up the references and consider them carefully before granting permission.

I have recently realised that I have Fifty years unexpired on my flat in Meopham. I am keen to extend my lease but my landlord is absent. What should I do?

If you meet the appropriate requirements, 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 enable the lease to be granted an extra 90 years by the magistrate. You will be obliged to prove that you have made all reasonable attempts to find the landlord. In some cases an enquiry agent may be useful to carry out a search and prepare an expert document to be used as evidence that the freeholder can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a property lawyer in relation to proving the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court overseeing Meopham.

I have just appointed agents to market my basement apartment in Meopham.Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon but I have just had a yearly maintenance charge demand – what should I do?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should pay 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 until 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. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

Back In 2005, I bought a leasehold house in Meopham. Conveyancing and Accord Mortgages Ltd mortgage went though with no issue. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the freehold. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1993. The conveyancing practitioner in Meopham who acted for me is not around.Any advice?

The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to be sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. You do not need to incur the fees of a Meopham conveyancing firm to do this as it can be done on-line for a few pound. You should note that regardless, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Meopham from the point of view of saving time on the sale process?

  • A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Meopham can be reduced where you appoint lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and ask them to put together the leasehold information needed by the purchasers’ conveyancers.
  • In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s permission? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Meopham state that internal structural alterations or addition of wooden flooring necessitate a licence from the Landlord acquiescing to such works. If you dont have the paperwork to hand do not contact the landlord without checking with your solicitor first.
  • Some Meopham leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, it would be prudent to notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are able to meet the annual 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 have had any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved prior to the flat being marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where there is an ongoing dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to pay any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to reveal the dispute as over as opposed to ongoing.
  • If you have the benefit of shareholding in the freehold, you should make sure that you have the original share document. Obtaining a duplicate share certificate can be a time consuming formality and frustrates many a Meopham home move. Where a new share certificate is needed, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (where relevant) for this at the earliest opportunity.

    • Meopham Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Questions you should consider before Purchasing

      How much is the ground rent and service charge? It is important to be aware if a new roof is being put on or some other significant cost is pending to be shared between the leaseholders and could well dramatically increase the the service costs or result in a specific payment. Please note that where the lease has no more than 80 years it will have adverse implications on the salability of the flat. Check with your mortgage company that they are content with the length of the lease. A short lease means that you will almost definitely need a lease extension at some point and you need to have some idea of how much this would cost. For most Meophamlease extensions you would be be obliged to have been the owner of the premises for two years before you are legally able to exercise a lease extension.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Meopham