I today plan to offer on a house that seems to meet my requirements, at a great price which is making it more attractive. I have since been informed that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are issues buying a house with a leasehold title in Newton Ferrers. Conveyancing advisers have are soon to be instructed. Will they explain the issues?

Most houses in Newton Ferrers are freehold and not leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can assist with the conveyancing process. it is apparent that you are buying in Newton Ferrers in which case you should be shopping around for a Newton Ferrers conveyancing solicitor and check that they are used to transacting on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. Being a tenant you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions for example requiring the freeholder’spermission to conduct changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a maintenance charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the house is located on an estate. Your conveyancer should report to you on the legal implications.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold flat in Newton Ferrers. Conveyancing and HSBC Bank mortgage organised. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1998. The conveyancing solicitor in Newton Ferrers who acted for me is not around.What should I do?

First contact the Land Registry to be sure that this person is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. It is not necessary to instruct a Newton Ferrers conveyancing practitioner to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for £3. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I am attracted to a two flats in Newton Ferrers which have in the region of 50 years unexpired on the lease term. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

There is no doubt about it. A leasehold flat in Newton Ferrers is a wasting asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The closer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it reduces the value of the property. The majority of purchasers and lenders, leases with under eighty years become less and less marketable. On a more positive note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the property for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of property with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Newton Ferrers conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. A more straightforward and quicker method of extending would be to contact your landlord directly and sound him out on the prospect of extending the lease They may agree to a smaller lump sum and an increase in the ground rent, but to shorter extension terms in return. You need to ensure that any new terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.

Last month I purchased a leasehold house in Newton Ferrers. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. Strange as it may seem, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. It is an essential part 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).

When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Newton Ferrers what are the most frequent lease problems?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Newton Ferrers. All leases is drafted differently and drafting errors can result in certain sections are erroneous. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• A provision to repair to or maintain elements of the building
• Insurance obligations
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

A defective lease will likely cause problems when trying to sell a property as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Santander, Chelsea Building Society, and Nottingham Building Society all have express conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to grant the mortgage, forcing the purchaser to withdraw.

Newton Ferrers Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Queries Prior to buying

It is important to be aware whether changing the roof or some other major work is coming up that will be shared by the leasehold owners and may well materially increase the the service costs or require a specific payment. Where a Newton Ferrers lease has no more than eighty years it will have adverse implications on the marketability of the property. It is worth checking with your lender that they are content with remaining years on the lease. A short lease means that you will probably have to extend the lease at some point and it is worth finding out what this will be. For most Newton Ferrerslease extensions you will need to own the premises for 24 months before you are legally able to carry out a lease extension. The prefered form of lease arrangement is a share of the freehold. In this situation the leaseholders benefit from control and although a managing agent is frequently retained where it is larger than a house conversion, the managing agent is directed by the tenants.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Newton Ferrers