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Leasehold conveyancing in Mossley 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 Mossley and next step up in loc. The lawyers we recommend have been approved by your lender so use our search tool to check.

Top Five Questions relating to Mossley leasehold conveyancing

Planning to complete next month on a garden flat in Mossley. Conveyancing solicitors have said that they will have a report out to me on Monday. What should I be looking out for?

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

  • You should receive a copy of the lease
  • Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, landlord
  • Defining your rights in respect of common areas in the building.E.G., does the lease permit a right of way over an accessway or staircase?
  • You should have a good understanding of the insurance provisions
  • Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your property and do you know what it means in practice?
  • The landlord’s obligations to repair and maintain the building. It is important that you know who is responsible for the repair and maintenance of every part of the building
  • Responsibility for repairing the window frames For a comprehensive list of information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Mossley please ask your solicitor in ahead of your conveyancing in Mossley

    • I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that seems to be perfect, at a reasonable figure which is making it more attractive. I have subsequently found out that the title is leasehold as opposed to freehold. I would have thought that there are issues buying a house with a leasehold title in Mossley. Conveyancing lawyers have are soon to be instructed. Will they explain the issues?

    The majority of houses in Mossley are freehold rather than leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local solicitor used to dealing with such properties who can assist with the conveyancing process. We note that you are buying in Mossley in which case you should be looking for a Mossley conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they are used to advising on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the number of years remaining. As a tenant you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions such as requiring the freeholder’spermission to conduct alterations. You may also be required to pay a contribution towards the upkeep of the communal areas where the house is part of an estate. Your lawyer will report to you on the legal implications.

    I am a negotiator for a long established estate agency in Mossley where we see a number of flat sales jeopardised as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Mossley conveyancing solicitors. Could you clarify whether the owner 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 kick-start 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 sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done prior to, or simultaneously with completion of the sale.

    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.

    Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Mossley with the aim of speeding up the sale process?

    • Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Mossley can be reduced if you get in touch lawyers the minute you market your property and request that they start to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers representatives.
    • In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s approval? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Most leases in Mossley state that internal structural changes or installing wooden flooring require a licence from the Landlord consenting to such changes. Should you fail to have the consents to hand you should not communicate with the landlord without checking with your solicitor first.
  • Some Mossley leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, it would be prudent to notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. Any bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are able to meet 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 service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their lawyers.
  • If there is a history of conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are settled before the property is marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be nervous about purchasing a flat where there is an ongoing dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to discharge any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to 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 present the dispute as historic rather than ongoing.
  • If you hold a share in a the freehold, you should make sure that you have the original share certificate. Organising a re-issued share certificate can be a time consuming process and frustrates many a Mossley home move. Where a new share certificate is necessary, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (where relevant) for this as soon as possible.

    • Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on the disposal of our £175000 apartment in Mossley next week. The management company has quoted £312 for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and previous years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Mossley?

    Mossley conveyancing on leasehold apartments usually requires the buyer’s lawyer sending questions for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is not legally bound to address such questions the majority will be willing to assist. They are at liberty levy a reasonable administration fee for responding to questions or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average costs for the paperwork that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some cases it exceeds £800. The management information fee demanded by the landlord must be accompanied by a summary of rights and obligations in respect of administration fees, without which the invoice is not strictly payable. In reality you have little option but to pay whatever is requested of you should you wish to exchange contracts with the buyer.

    Mossley Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Questions you should consider before Purchasing

      Does the lease have onerous restrictions? Is the freehold owned jointly by the leaseholders? How many years remain on the lease?

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Mossley