Leasehold Conveyancing in Peterlee - Get a Quote from the leasehold experts approved by your lender

Get a Quote

Whether you are buying or selling leasehold flat in Peterlee, our panel of leasehold conveyancing experts will help you move with as little stress as possible. Find a Peterlee conveyancing lawyer with our search tool

Recently asked questions relating to Peterlee leasehold conveyancing

I would like to sublet my leasehold flat in Peterlee. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask him. Is permission from the freeholder required?

Some leases for properties in Peterlee do contain a provision to say that subletting is only permitted with prior consent from the landlord. The landlord is not entitled to unreasonably refuse but, in such cases, they would need to review references. Experience suggests that problems are usually caused by unsatisfactory tenants rather than owner-occupiers and for that reason you can expect the freeholder to take up the references and consider them carefully before granting consent.

There are only 68 years left on my lease in Peterlee. I now wish to extend my lease but my landlord is missing. What are my options?

On the basis that you meet the appropriate requirements, 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 lengthened by the magistrate. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you have used your best endeavours to find the lessor. On the whole a specialist should be helpful to conduct investigations and to produce an expert document to be accepted by the court as proof that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a solicitor both on investigating the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court covering Peterlee.

Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my ground floor apartment in Peterlee.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just had a quarterly maintenance charge invoice – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

It best that you discharge the service charge as normal because all ground rent and service charges will be apportioned on completion, so you will be reimbursed by the buyer for the period running from after the completion date to the next payment date. Most management companies will not acknowledge the buyer unless the service charges have been paid and are up to date so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Peterlee with the aim of saving time on the sale process?

  • A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Peterlee can be bypassed if you appoint lawyers the minute you market your property and request that they start to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the purchasers’ conveyancers.
  • Many landlords or Management Companies in Peterlee levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should discover the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack 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 frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Peterlee.
  • If you have carried out any alterations to the residence would they have required Landlord’s consent? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Peterlee state that internal structural changes or laying down wooden flooring require a licence from the Landlord approving such alterations. If you dont have the consents in place you should not contact the landlord without contacting your solicitor in advance.
  • If you have had any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are resolved before the property is put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where a dispute is unsettled. You will have to accept that you will have to pay any arrears of service charge or settle 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 clearly preferable to present the dispute as over as opposed to unsettled.
  • You may think that you are aware of the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be advisable verify this by asking your lawyers. 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 requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale.

    • Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on the sale of our £400000 maisonette in Peterlee next week. The landlords agents has quoted £312 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and previous years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Peterlee?

    Peterlee conveyancing on leasehold flats usually necessitates the buyer’s solicitor sending questions for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to respond to these enquiries most will be content to do so. They are entitled levy a reasonable administration fee for responding to questions or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average fee for the information that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some cases it is above £800. The management information fee invoiced by the landlord must be accompanied by a synopsis of rights and obligations in relation to administration fees, without which the invoice is not strictly payable. Reality however dictates that one has no option but to pay whatever is requested of you if you want to sell the property.

    I inherited a 1 bedroom flat in Peterlee, conveyancing having been completed 2010. Can you let me have an estimate of the premium that my landlord can legally expect in return for granting a renewal of my lease? Corresponding properties in Peterlee with a long lease are worth £256,000. The ground rent is £60 invoiced annually. The lease finishes on 21st October 2091

    With 68 years remaining on your lease we estimate the premium for your lease extension to span between £10,500 and £12,000 plus costs.

    The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed investigations. You should not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional issues that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward placing reliance on this information without first getting professional advice.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Peterlee