Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Perry Barr:

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When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Perry Barr, you will need to instruct a conveyancing practitioner with leasehold experience. Whether your mortgage company is to be Halifax, RBS or Nationwide be sure to find a lawyer on their panel. Find a Perry Barr conveyancing lawyer with our search tool

Recently asked questions relating to Perry Barr leasehold conveyancing

Jane (my partner) and I may need to let out our Perry Barr garden flat for a while due to a new job. We used a Perry Barr conveyancing firm in 2001 but they have closed and we did not think at the time get any advice as to whether the lease permits subletting. How do we find out?

Even though your last Perry Barr conveyancing lawyer is no longer around you can check your lease to see if you are permitted to let out the apartment. The accepted inference is that if the deeds are silent, subletting is allowed. There may be a precondition that you need to obtain consent via your landlord or some other party before subletting. This means that you cannot sublet in the absence of first obtaining permission. Such consent should not be unreasonably turned down. If your lease prohibits you from letting out the property you should ask your landlord for their consent.

Due to sign contracts shortly on a leasehold property in Perry Barr. Conveyancing solicitors have said that they report fully on Monday. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Perry Barr should include some of the following:

  • You should receive a copy of the lease
  • The total extent of the property. This will be the apartment itself but could also incorporate a loft or basement if applicable.
  • Defining your rights in respect of common areas in the block.E.G., does the lease include a right of way over a path or staircase?
  • Whether your lease has a provision for a reserve fund?
  • You should have a good understanding of the insurance provisions
  • Changes to the flat (alterations and additions)
  • Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your premises and do you know what it means in practice? For a comprehensive list of information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Perry Barr please ask your solicitor in ahead of your conveyancing in Perry Barr

    • I am attracted to a couple of flats in Perry Barr which have in the region of fifty years left on the leases. Will this present a problem?

    There are no two ways about it. A leasehold apartment in Perry Barr is a deteriorating asset as a result of the shortening lease. The nearer the lease gets to its expiry date, the more it reduces the marketability of the premises. For most purchasers and banks, leases with less than 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 premises 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 a residence 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 Perry Barr 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 You may find he or she is happy to negotiate informally and willing to consider your offer straight off, without having to involve anyone else. This will save you time and money and it could help you reach a lower price on the lease. You need to ensure that the agreed 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 flat in Perry Barr. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to completion of my purchase?

    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. 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).

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

    • Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Perry Barr can be reduced where you get in touch lawyers the minute your agents start marketing the property and ask them to collate the leasehold documentation needed by the purchasers’ representatives.
    • Many landlords or managing agents in Perry Barr charge for supplying management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should find out the fee that they propose to charge. The management information can be applied for as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. The average time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most common reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Perry Barr.
  • Some Perry Barr 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 financial (bank) and professional references. The bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is 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 purchasers or their solicitors.
  • If there is a history of conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are settled before the property is put on the market. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property 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 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 are still duty bound to disclose particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to present the dispute as historic rather than unsettled.
  • You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but it would be wise to double-check by asking your conveyancers. A purchaser's lawyer will not be happy to advise their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the remaining number of years is below 80 years. In the circumstances it is essential at an as soon as possible that you consider whether the lease requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale.

    • I own a split level flat in Perry Barr, conveyancing having been completed half a dozen years ago. Can you shed any light on how much the price could be for a 90 year extension to my lease? Similar flats in Perry Barr with over 90 years remaining are worth £266,000. The ground rent is £50 charged once a year. The lease ceases on 21st October 2100

    With just 74 years left to run we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £9,500 and £11,000 as well as costs.

    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 without more detailed investigations. Do not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be other concerns that need to be considered and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward placing reliance on this information without first getting professional advice.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Perry Barr