Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Portslade:

Get a Quote

While any conveyancing practice can theoretically handle your leasehold conveyancing in Portslade, your mortgage provider may unwilling to work with them if the firm are not on their list of approved solicitors for conveyancing

Recently asked questions relating to Portslade leasehold conveyancing

My fiance and I may need to sub-let our Portslade garden flat for a while due to a career opportunity. We instructed a Portslade conveyancing practice in 2001 but they have closed and we did not think at the time get any guidance as to whether the lease prohibits the subletting of the flat. How do we find out?

Even though your last Portslade conveyancing solicitor is not around you can check your lease to check if it allows you to sublet the property. The accepted inference is that if the deeds are silent, subletting is permitted. There may be a precondition that you are obliged to seek permission from your landlord or other appropriate person in advance of subletting. The net result is you not allowed to sublet in the absence of prior permission. The consent should not be unreasonably withheld. If the lease prohibits you from letting out the property you should ask your landlord for their consent.

I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that seems to tick a lot of boxes, at a reasonable figure which is making it more attractive. I have subsequently discovered that the title is leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are particular concerns purchasing a house with a leasehold title in Portslade. Conveyancing advisers have are soon to be appointed. Will they explain the issues?

Most houses in Portslade are freehold rather than leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer used to dealing with such properties who can assist with the conveyancing process. it is apparent that you are buying in Portslade in which case you should be looking for a Portslade conveyancing practitioner and check that they have experience in advising on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the number of years remaining. As a leaseholder you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions for example obtaining the landlord’sconsent to carry out alterations. You may also be required to pay a contribution towards the maintenance of the communal areas where the house is part of an estate. Your conveyancer will advise you fully on all the issues.

I own a leasehold house in Portslade. Conveyancing and Clydesdale mortgage went though with no issue. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1997. The conveyancing solicitor in Portslade who previously acted has long since retired.What should I do?

First make enquiries of the Land Registry to make sure that this person is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. It is not necessary to instruct a Portslade conveyancing firm to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for a few pound. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Portslade from the perspective of saving time on the sale process?

  • Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Portslade can be avoided where you instruct lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation needed by the buyers conveyancers.
  • Many landlords or managing agents in Portslade charge for supplying management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should discover the actual amount of the charges. The management pack can be applied for 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 delay in leasehold conveyancing in Portslade.
  • Some Portslade leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. Any 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 solicitors.
  • If you have had any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are settled prior to the flat being marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where a dispute is unresolved. You may have to bite the bullet and 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 clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as over as opposed to ongoing.
  • If you have the benefit of shareholding in the freehold, you should make sure that you hold the original share certificate. Arranging a new share certificate is often a lengthy process and frustrates many a Portslade home move. If a reissued share certificate is needed, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (where relevant) for this as soon as possible.

    • In relation to leasehold conveyancing in Portslade what are the most common lease defects?

    There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Portslade. All leases are individual and legal mistakes in the legal wording can result in certain provisions are missing. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

    • Repairing obligations to or maintain elements of the property
    • A duty to insure the building
    • A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
    • Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

    You could have a problem when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Yorkshire Building Society, Norwich and Peterborough Building Society, and Barclays Direct all have very detailed requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is problematic they may refuse to grant the mortgage, forcing the purchaser to withdraw.

    Portslade Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Queries Prior to Purchasing

      You should want to find out as much as possible about the managing agents as they will either make your living at the property much simpler or problematic. As the proprietor of a leasehold property you will be at the mercy of the managing agents from a financial perspective and when it comes to practical matters like the tidiness of the communal areas. You should not be shy to ask prospective neighbours what they think of them. Finally, investigate as to the dates that you are obliged pay the maintenance charge to the appropriate party and precisely what it includes. In the main the cost for major works are not built into the service charges, although some managing agents in Portslade ask leaseholders to contribute towards a reserve fund created for the specific intention of building a fund for major works. How many of the leaseholders are in arrears for their service charge payments?

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Portslade