I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Pitsea. Before I set the wheels in motion I would like to find out the number of years remaining on the lease.

If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and 99.9% are in Pitsea - 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.

Harry (my fiance) and I may need to rent out our Pitsea 1st floor flat temporarily due to a new job. We instructed a Pitsea conveyancing practice in 2002 but they have since shut and we did not think at the time get any advice as to whether the lease permits subletting. How do we find out?

Your lease dictates the relationship between the freeholder and you the leaseholder; specifically, it will say if subletting is prohibited, or permitted but only subject to certain conditions. The rule is that if the lease contains no expres ban or restriction, subletting is permitted. Most leases in Pitsea do not prevent an absolute prevention of subletting – such a clause would undoubtedly devalue the property. In most cases there is a basic requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly sending a copy of the sublease.

Back In 2007, I bought a leasehold house in Pitsea. Conveyancing and Alliance & Leicester mortgage are in place. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1994. The conveyancing solicitor in Pitsea who acted for me is not around.Any advice?

The first thing you should do is make enquiries of the Land Registry to be sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is indeed the new freeholder. There is no need to instruct a Pitsea conveyancing practitioner to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

Last month I purchased a leasehold flat in Pitsea. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to my ownership?

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. 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).

When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Pitsea what are the most common lease defects?

Leasehold conveyancing in Pitsea is not unique. All leases is drafted differently and drafting errors can sometimes mean that certain provisions are missing. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• A provision to repair to or maintain parts of the property
• A duty to insure the building
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

You could have difficulties when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Halifax, The Mortgage Works, and TSB 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 provide security, forcing the purchaser to pull out.

Pitsea Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Questions you should consider Prior to Purchasing

Make sure you find out if there are any onerous prohibitions in the lease. For example some leases prohibit pets being permitted in in a block in Pitsea. If you like the apartmentin Pitsea but your cat is not allowed to move with you then you will be faced hard decision. Who manages the block? What is the the remaining lease term?

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Pitsea