Quality lawyers for Leasehold Conveyancing in Mudeford

Get a Quote

When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Mudeford, you will need to instruct a conveyancing solicitor with leasehold experience. Whether your mortgage company is to be Clydesdale , Yorkshire Building Society or NatWest make sure you choose a lawyer on their approved list. Find a Mudeford conveyancing lawyer with our search tool

Questions and Answers: Mudeford leasehold conveyancing

Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my 2 bed apartment in Mudeford.Conveyancing has not commenced but I have just had a quarterly maintenance charge invoice – what should I do?

The sensible thing to do is pay the service charge 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. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold flat in Mudeford. Conveyancing and TSB mortgage organised. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the freehold. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1998. The conveyancing practitioner in Mudeford who previously acted has long since retired.Do I pay?

The first thing you should do is make enquiries of HMLR to make sure that this person is indeed the new freeholder. You do not need to instruct a Mudeford conveyancing firm to do this as it can be done on-line for a few pound. You should note that in any event, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I am a negotiator for a busy estate agent office in Mudeford where we see a few leasehold sales jeopardised as a result of short leases. I have received contradictory information from local Mudeford conveyancing solicitors. Can you confirm whether the seller 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 proposed purchaser 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 prior to, or simultaneously with completion of the sale.

Alternatively, it may be possible 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 purchaser.

What advice can you give us when it comes to finding a Mudeford conveyancing firm to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

If you are instructing a property lawyer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Mudeford conveyancing practice) it is imperative that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We recommend that you speak with several firms including non Mudeford conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions might be of use:

  • How familiar is the firm with lease extension legislation?
  • If they are not ALEP accredited then what is the reason?

    • Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Mudeford with the aim of speeding up the sale process?

    • Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Mudeford can be avoided where you appoint lawyers the minute you market your property and request that they start to collate the leasehold information needed by the purchasers’ solicitors.
    • The majority landlords or managing agents in Mudeford levy fees for providing management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should discover the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack sought on or before finding a buyer, thus reducing delays. The typical amount of time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most frequent cause of frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Mudeford.
  • If you have carried out any alterations to the premises would they have required Landlord’s consent? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Mudeford state that internal structural alterations or laying down wooden flooring necessitate a licence from the Landlord approving such alterations. Should you fail to have the paperwork in place you should not contact the landlord without contacting your solicitor in advance.
  • If there is a history of any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved before the property is put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where there is a current dispute. You may have to bite the bullet and 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 prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to present the dispute as historic rather than unresolved.
  • If you have the benefit of shareholding in the freehold, you should ensure that you have the original share certificate. Organising a new share certificate can be a time consuming process and slows down many a Mudeford conveyancing transaction. If a duplicate share is required, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (where applicable) for this sooner rather than later.

    • I bought a ground floor flat in Mudeford, conveyancing having been completed 9 years ago. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Equivalent properties in Mudeford with over 90 years remaining are worth £174,000. The ground rent is £65 charged once a year. The lease finishes on 21st October 2087

    You have 66 years unexpired we estimate the premium for your lease extension to span between £13,300 and £15,400 plus legals.

    The figure above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to provide a more accurate figure in the absence of comprehensive investigations. Do not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional concerns that need to be taken into account and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not take any other action placing reliance on this information before getting professional advice.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Mudeford