Due to complete next month on a garden flat in Morganstown. Conveyancing solicitors assured me that they will have a report out to me next week. What should I be looking out for?

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

• The length of the lease term You should be advised as what happens when the lease ends, and aware of the importance of not letting the lease term falling below eighty years

I’m about to sell my garden flat in Morganstown.Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon but I have just received a half-yearly maintenance charge invoice – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

It best that you 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 2009, I bought a leasehold flat in Morganstown. Conveyancing and Lloyds TSB Bank mortgage are in place. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1997. The conveyancing practitioner in Morganstown who acted for me is not around.Any advice?

First make enquiries of HMLR to be sure that this person is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. It is not necessary to instruct a Morganstown conveyancing lawyer to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. You should note 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 work for a long established estate agency in Morganstown where we have witnessed a number of flat sales derailed due to short leases. I have received conflicting advice from local Morganstown conveyancing firms. Can you shed some light as to whether the owner of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

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. The benefit of this is that the buyer 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.

An alternative approach is 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 buyer.

What are the frequently found defects that you encounter in leases for Morganstown properties?

Leasehold conveyancing in Morganstown is not unique. Most leases are unique and drafting errors can sometimes mean that certain provisions are not included. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the premises
• Insurance obligations
• A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

A defective lease will likely cause issues when trying to sell a property as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Lloyds TSB Bank, The Royal Bank of Scotland, and Aldermore all have very detailed conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is defective they may refuse to provide security, obliging the purchaser to withdraw.

Morganstown Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Queries Prior to Purchasing

On the whole the outlay for major works are not included within service charges, albeit that a few managing agents in Morganstown require leasehold owners to pay into a sinking fund and this is used to offset against larger repairs or maintenance. Where a Morganstown lease has fewer than 80 years it will affect the marketability of the apartment. Check with your lender that they are happy with the length of the lease. A short lease means that you will most likely have to extend the lease sooner rather than later and you need to have some idea of what this would cost. Remember, in most cases you would need to own the property for 24 months in order to be legally able to extend the lease. It is important to be aware if a new roof is being installed or some other major work is anticipated to be shared amongst the leasehold owners and will materially impact the level of the service costs or result in a specific payment.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Morganstown