Guaranteed fixed fees for Leasehold Conveyancing in Newport Pagnell

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Recently asked questions relating to Newport Pagnell leasehold conveyancing

I today plan to offer on a house that seems to tick a lot of boxes, at a reasonable price which is making it more attractive. I have just found out that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are particular concerns buying a leasehold house in Newport Pagnell. Conveyancing lawyers have are soon to be appointed. Will they explain the issues?

Most houses in Newport Pagnell are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can help the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are purchasing in Newport Pagnell so you should seriously consider looking for a Newport Pagnell conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they have experience in advising on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the unexpired lease term. Being a leaseholder you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions for example requiring the freeholder’spermission to conduct changes to the property. You may also be required to pay a maintenance charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the house is part of an estate. Your solicitor will report to you on the legal implications.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold house in Newport Pagnell. Conveyancing and Godiva Mortgages Ltd mortgage are in place. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1998. The conveyancing solicitor in Newport Pagnell who acted for me is not around.Do I pay?

The first thing you should do is contact the Land Registry to be sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. There is no need to incur the fees of a Newport Pagnell conveyancing firm to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for a few pound. You should note that in any event, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

I've recently bought a leasehold property in Newport Pagnell. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before my ownership?

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 ensure 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).

I work for a busy estate agency in Newport Pagnell where we have experienced a few flat sales derailed as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received contradictory information from local Newport Pagnell conveyancing firms. Could you shed some light as to whether the owner of a flat can start the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser can avoid having to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.

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.

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

  • Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Newport Pagnell can be bypassed where you appoint lawyers as soon as you market your property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers lawyers.
  • The majority landlords or managing agents in Newport Pagnell levy fees for providing management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should discover the actual amount of the charges. The management information sought as soon as you have a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The typical amount of time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most frequent reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Newport Pagnell.
  • In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s permission? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Newport Pagnell leases often stipulate that internal structural changes or installing wooden flooring require a licence issued by the Landlord approving such changes. Should you fail to have the paperwork to hand do not communicate with the landlord without contacting your solicitor in the first instance.
  • A minority of Newport Pagnell leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this is the case, it would be prudent to notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are financially capable of paying 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 solicitors.
  • If you have had any disputes with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved prior to the flat being put on the market. 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 will still have to reveal details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to present the dispute as historic rather than unresolved.

    • I own a ground floor flat in Newport Pagnell, conveyancing formalities finalised 5 years ago. Can you shed any light on how much the price could be for a 90 year extension to my lease? Corresponding properties in Newport Pagnell with an extended lease are worth £247,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £65 invoiced every year. The lease runs out on 21st October 2077

    With just 52 years left to run we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £32,300 and £37,400 as well as legals.

    The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to supply a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed due diligence. Do not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt other concerns that need to be taken into account and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward placing reliance on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Newport Pagnell