Guaranteed fixed fees for Leasehold Conveyancing in Perry Barr

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Questions and Answers: Perry Barr leasehold conveyancing

Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Perry Barr. Before diving in I want to be sure as to the remaining lease term.

Assuming the lease is recorded at the land registry - and most are in Perry Barr - then the leasehold title will always include the basic details 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.

Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only 68 years remaining on my flat in Perry Barr. I now want to extend my lease but my freeholder is can not be found. What options are available to me?

If you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be granted an extra 90 years by the Court. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you have made all reasonable attempts to find the landlord. On the whole an enquiry agent may be helpful to try and locate and prepare a report to be used as proof that the freeholder can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a solicitor in relation to investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Perry Barr.

Due to exchange soon on a garden flat in Perry Barr. Conveyancing solicitors have said that they report fully tomorrow. 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:

  • The total extent of the property. This will be the flat itself but may incorporate a loft or basement if applicable.
  • Setting out your legal entitlements in relation to common areas in the block.For instance, does the lease provide for a right of way over an accessway or hallways?
  • Ground rent - how much and when you need to pay, and also know whether this is subject to change
  • Whether your lease has a provision for a reserve fund?
  • Changes to the flat (alterations and additions)
  • I don't know whether the lease allows me to alter or improve anything in the flat - you should know whether it applies to all alterations or just structural alteration, and whether consent is required
  • 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 enquire of your lawyer in ahead of your conveyancing in Perry Barr

    • 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. 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 advice for leasehold conveyancing in Perry Barr from the perspective of saving time on the sale process?

    • A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Perry Barr can be reduced where you get in touch lawyers as soon as you market your property and request that they start to collate the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers representatives.
    • In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s consent? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Perry Barr state that internal structural changes or laying down wooden flooring require a licence from the Landlord acquiescing to such works. Where you fail to have the approvals to hand do not communicate with the landlord without contacting your solicitor before hand.
  • Some Perry Barr 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 financial (bank) and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are able to meet 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 actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their lawyers.
  • If you have had conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved prior to the flat being marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where a dispute is unresolved. You will have to accept that you will have to pay any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to completion of the sale. 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 details of the dispute to the buyers, but it is better to present the dispute as historic as opposed to ongoing.
  • If you are supposed to have a share in the Management Company, you should ensure that you have the original share document. Arranging a duplicate share certificate can be a time consuming process and slows down many a Perry Barr home move. Where a reissued share certificate is needed, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (if relevant) for this as soon as possible.

    • Leasehold Conveyancing in Perry Barr - Sample of Queries Prior to buying

      The prefered form of lease structure is if the freehold reversion is owned by the leaseholders. In this scenario the lessees enjoy being in charge if their destiny and even though a managing agent is frequently employed if the building is larger than a house conversion, the managing agent employed by the leaseholders. What is the name of the managing agents? Many Perry Barr leasehold flats will have a service bill for the upkeep of the building invoiced on behalf of the landlord. Should you purchase the flat you will have to meet this charge, usually periodically accross the year. This may be anything from several hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for large purpose-built blocks. In all likelihood there will be a ground rent to be met yearly, this is usually not a large amount, say about £50-£100 but you should to check as occasionally it could be many hundreds of pounds.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Perry Barr