Planning to exchange soon on a studio apartment in Quedgeley. Conveyancing lawyers assured me that they are sending me a report within the next couple of days. What should I be looking out for?

Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Quedgeley should include some of the following:

• The unexpired lease term You should be advised as what happens when the lease expires, and aware of the importance of not letting the lease term falling below eighty years

Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, landlord

Will you be prohibited or prevented from having pets in the property?

You should have a good understanding of the insurance provisions

Repair and maintenance of the flat

Changes to the flat (alterations and additions)

What the implications are if you breach a clause of your lease? For details of the information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Quedgeley please enquire of your solicitor in advance of your conveyancing in Quedgeley

I am a negotiator for a long established estate agency in Quedgeley where we have experienced a few flat sales put at risk due to short leases. I have received conflicting advice from local Quedgeley conveyancing solicitors. Can you clarify whether the seller of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the buyer can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done prior to, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.

An alternative approach is to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the purchaser.

What advice can you give us when it comes to choosing a Quedgeley conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

If you are instructing a solicitor for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Quedgeley conveyancing practice) it is essential that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We advise that you talk with several firms including non Quedgeley conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions could be useful:

• How many lease extensions has the firm carried out in Quedgeley in the last year?

Can they put you in touch with client in Quedgeley who can give a testimonial?

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Quedgeley from the perspective of expediting the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Quedgeley can be bypassed where you appoint lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and ask them to collate the leasehold documentation needed by the buyers representatives.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s approval? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Most leases in Quedgeley state that internal structural changes or addition of wooden flooring require a licence from the Landlord acquiescing to such alterations. If you dont have the approvals to hand you should not contact the landlord without contacting your solicitor in advance.

A minority of Quedgeley 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 obtain bank and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is 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 service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their lawyers.

If you have had conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are resolved prior to the flat being marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be nervous about purchasing a flat where there is an ongoing dispute. You may need to swallow your pride and pay 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 particulars of the dispute to the buyers, but it is clearly preferable to present the dispute as over as opposed to ongoing.

If you hold a share in a the Management Company, you should make sure that you are holding the original share document. Arranging a new share certificate is often a lengthy formality and slows down many a Quedgeley home move. If a reissued share is needed, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (if relevant) for this at the earliest opportunity.

Completion in due on the disposal of our £250000 maisonette in Quedgeley next week. The managing agents has quoted £348 for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and 3 years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Quedgeley?

For the majority of leasehold sales in Quedgeley conveyancing will involve, questions about the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :

• Answering pre-contract enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in Quedgeley
• Supplying insurance information
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your conveyancer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Quedgeley leasehold premises is £350. For Quedgeley 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 own a split level flat in Quedgeley, conveyancing having been completed 8 years ago. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Corresponding flats in Quedgeley with an extended lease are worth £244,000. The ground rent is £50 yearly. The lease ceases on 21st October 2075

You have 54 years left to run we estimate the premium for your lease extension to be between £35,200 and £40,600 plus costs.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to advice on a more accurate figure without more comprehensive investigations. You should not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt other issues that need to be taken into account and clearly you want to 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 Quedgeley