Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Newbury:

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

Sample questions relating to Newbury leasehold conveyancing

I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Newbury. Before I get started I want to be sure as to the remaining lease term.

If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and almost all are in Newbury - then the leasehold title will always include the short particulars 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.

There are only 62 years unexpired on my lease in Newbury. I am keen to extend my lease but my landlord is absent. What are my options?

If you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be extended by the Court. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have made all reasonable attempts to locate the landlord. On the whole a specialist may be useful to carry out a search and prepare a report to be used as proof that the landlord is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a solicitor in relation to devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court covering Newbury.

I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that appears to tick a lot of boxes, at a reasonable figure which is making it more attractive. I have since discovered that it's a leasehold as opposed to freehold. I would have thought that there are particular concerns buying a leasehold house in Newbury. Conveyancing solicitors have are soon to be appointed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Newbury are freehold rather than leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area can help the conveyancing process. We note that you are purchasing in Newbury so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Newbury conveyancing practitioner and check that they have experience in dealing with leasehold houses. First you will need to check the unexpired lease term. As a tenant you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want with the house. The lease comes with conditions for example obtaining the landlord’spermission to carry out alterations. It may be necessary to pay a contribution towards the maintenance of the estate where the house is part of an estate. Your conveyancer will advise you fully on all the issues.

Last month I purchased a leasehold property in Newbury. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before my ownership?

In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. However, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to be sure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.

If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Newbury from the point of view of speeding up the sale process?

  • Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Newbury can be bypassed if you get in touch lawyers as soon as you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold information needed by the purchasers’ solicitors.
  • If you have carried out any alterations to the property would they have required Landlord’s consent? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Newbury state that internal structural changes or installing wooden flooring require a licence issued by the Landlord acquiescing to such works. Should you fail to have the paperwork to hand do not communicate with the landlord without contacting your conveyancer first.
  • If you have had any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are settled before the property is put on the market. The buyers and their solicitors will be concerned about purchasing a property where a dispute is unsettled. You may have to bite the bullet and discharge any arrears of service charge or settle 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 are still duty bound to disclose details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to reveal the dispute as historic rather than unresolved.
  • If you hold a share in a the freehold, you should make sure that you have the original share certificate. Obtaining a replacement share certificate can be a time consuming formality and frustrates many a Newbury conveyancing deal. Where a duplicate share is needed, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (where relevant) for this as soon as possible.
  • You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be wise to double-check via your solicitors. A buyer’s conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to where the remaining number of years is under 75 years. In the circumstances it is important at an as soon as possible that you consider whether the lease term for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

    • Newbury Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Queries Prior to Purchasing

      Who is in charge of the block? What is the maintenance charge and ground rent on the flat? Best to be warned if changing the roof or some other significant cost is due in the near future to be shared by the leaseholders and will dramatically impact the level of the maintenance charges or result in a specific invoice.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Newbury