Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Pevensey:

Any conveyancing practice can theoretically handle your leasehold conveyancing in Pevensey, your mortgage provider may not be willing to work with them if the firm are not on their list of approved solicitors for conveyancing

Questions and Answers: Pevensey leasehold conveyancing

I am hoping to exchange soon on a basement flat in Pevensey. Conveyancing lawyers inform me that they are sending me a report within the next couple of days. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Pevensey should include some of the following:

  • Setting out your rights in respect of the communal areas in the block.E.G., does the lease permit 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
  • An explanation as to the provision in the lease to pay service charges - with regard to both the building, and the more general rights a leaseholder has
  • You should have a good understanding of the insurance provisions
  • Repair and maintenance of the flat
  • Changes to the flat (alterations and additions)
  • What you can do if a neighbour is in violation of a provision in their lease? For a comprehensive list of information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Pevensey please ask your solicitor in ahead of your conveyancing in Pevensey

  • Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my 2 bed apartment in Pevensey.Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon but I have just received a half-yearly service charge demand – Do I pay up?

    Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should pay the invoice 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 managing agents will not acknowledge the buyer until 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. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

    My wife and I purchased a leasehold house in Pevensey. Conveyancing and Lloyds TSB Bank mortgage are in place. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1992. The conveyancing solicitor in Pevensey who previously acted has now retired.Any advice?

    First contact the Land Registry to be sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. There is no need to instruct a Pevensey conveyancing practitioner to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for £3. You should note that regardless, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

    Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Pevensey with the intention of speeding up the sale process?

    • A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Pevensey can be avoided if you get in touch lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information needed by the buyers lawyers.
    • The majority freeholders or managing agents in Pevensey charge for providing management packs for a leasehold premises. 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 average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most frequent reason for frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Pevensey.
  • If you have carried out any alterations to the property would they have required Landlord’s approval? Have you, for example laid down wooden flooring? Pevensey leases often stipulate that internal structural changes or laying down wooden flooring require a licence from the Landlord acquiescing to such changes. Should you dont have the consents to hand you should not contact the landlord without checking with your lawyer before hand.
  • If you have had conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are settled prior to the flat being marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be nervous about purchasing a flat where there is a current dispute. You may have to bite the bullet and pay any arrears of service charge or settle 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 buyers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as over as opposed to unresolved.
  • You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be advisable verify this by asking your conveyancers. A purchaser's conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to to exchange contracts if the remaining number of years is less than 75 years. It is therefore essential at an as soon as possible that you consider whether the lease term for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

  • All being well we will complete the sale of our £350000 garden flat in Pevensey in 5 days. The management company has quoted £372 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and previous years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in Pevensey?

    For most leasehold sales in Pevensey conveyancing will involve, queries regarding the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :

    • Answering pre-contract questions
    • Where consent is required before sale in Pevensey
    • Copies of the building insurance and schedule
    • Deeds of covenant upon sale
    • Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale
    Your lawyer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Pevensey leasehold property is £350. For Pevensey conveyancing transactions it is customary for the seller to pay for these costs. The landlord or their agents are under no legal obligation to answer such questions most will be willing to do so - albeit often at exorbitant prices where the fees bear little relation to the work involved. Unfortunately there is no law that requires fixed charges for administrative tasks. Neither is there any legal time frame by which they are obliged to supply answers.

    I invested in buying a 1 bedroom flat in Pevensey, conveyancing was carried out 4 years ago. How much will my lease extension cost? Similar properties in Pevensey with an extended lease are worth £250,000. The ground rent is £50 charged once a year. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2091

    With only 68 years left to run the likely cost is going to range between £9,500 and £11,000 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

    The figure above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to supply a more accurate figure without more comprehensive investigations. Do not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be additional issues that need to be taken into account and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward placing reliance on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Pevensey