Experts for Leasehold Conveyancing in Preston Park

When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Preston Park, you will need to chose a conveyancing practitioner with leasehold experience. Whether your lender is to be Clydesdale , Birmingham Midshires or Bradford & Bingley make sure you find a lawyer on their panel. Find a Preston Park conveyancing lawyer with our search tool

Preston Park leasehold conveyancing Example Support Desk Enquiries

I am intending to rent out my leasehold apartment in Preston Park. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask her. Is permission from the freeholder required?

Some leases for properties in Preston Park do contain a provision to say that subletting is only permitted with prior consent from the landlord. The landlord cannot unreasonably refuse but, in such cases, they would need to see 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.

I've recently bought a leasehold flat in Preston Park. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before my ownership?

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. It is an essential part of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to ensure 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).

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Preston Park with the intention of saving time on the sale process?

  • Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Preston Park can be avoided where you get in touch lawyers as soon as you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation needed by the buyers conveyancers.
  • In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s permission? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Most leases in Preston Park state that internal structural changes or addition of wooden flooring require a licence issued by the Landlord approving such works. If you dont have the consents to hand you should not communicate with the landlord without checking with your solicitor before hand.
  • A minority of Preston Park leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are financially capable of paying the yearly 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 freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are settled before the property is marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where a dispute is ongoing. You may need to swallow your pride and discharge any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal details of the dispute to the buyers, but it is clearly preferable to present the dispute as over rather than ongoing.
  • You may think that you are aware of the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be wise to double-check by asking your lawyers. A buyer’s conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to where the lease term is under 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 property on the market for sale.

  • Completion in due on the sale of our £400000 flat in Preston Park in 8 days. The management company has quoted £348 for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and previous years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge such fees for a leasehold conveyance in Preston Park?

    Preston Park conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes more often than not involves the purchaser’s lawyer sending questions for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to answer these enquiries the majority will be willing to assist. They are at liberty charge a reasonable administration fee for answering enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average costs for the information that you are referring to is £350, in some transactions it exceeds £800. The administration charge invoiced by the landlord must be sent together with a summary of rights and obligations in relation to administration charges, without which the invoice is technically not due. In reality one has little choice but to pay whatever is requested of you if you want to sell the property.

    What are the frequently found problems that you see in leases for Preston Park properties?

    Leasehold conveyancing in Preston Park is not unique. Most leases are individual and drafting errors can sometimes mean that certain clauses 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 premises
    • Insurance obligations
    • 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 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. Nationwide Building Society, Barnsley Building Society, and Barclays Direct all have very detailed conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is problematic they may refuse to provide security, obliging the buyer to pull out.

    I invested in buying a 1 bedroom flat in Preston Park, conveyancing was carried out half a dozen years ago. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Equivalent properties in Preston Park with a long lease are worth £249,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £45 levied per year. The lease expires on 21st October 2082

    You have 58 years remaining on your lease we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £29,500 and £34,000 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

    The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure without more comprehensive due diligence. Do not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be additional concerns that need to be taken into account and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward placing reliance on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Preston Park