I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Redruth. Before diving in I require certainty as to the unexpired term of the lease.

If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and almost all are in Redruth - then the leasehold title will always include the short particulars 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 let out our Redruth 1st floor flat for a while due to taking a sabbatical. We instructed a Redruth conveyancing practice in 2004 but they have closed and we did not think at the time get any advice as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?

A small minority of properties in Redruth do contain a provision to say that subletting is only permitted with prior consent from the landlord. The landlord is not entitled to unreasonably refuse but, in such cases, they would need to see references. Experience dictates 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 Redruth. Do I have any liability for service charges relating to a period prior to completion of my purchase?

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. Strange as it may seem, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element 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).

I work for a reputable estate agency in Redruth where we see a few leasehold sales jeopardised due to short leases. I have been given conflicting advice from local Redruth conveyancing solicitors. Please can you confirm whether the seller of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

As long as the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the buyer can avoid having to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or simultaneously with completion of the sale.

An alternative approach is to agree the lease extension with the freeholder 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.

If all goes to plan we aim to complete our sale of a £450000 maisonette in Redruth in 8 days. The management company has quoted £312 for Landlord’s certificate, 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 Redruth?

Redruth conveyancing on leasehold apartments usually necessitates the buyer’s solicitor submitting questions for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to respond to these enquiries the majority will be content to do so. They may invoice a reasonable administration fee for answering questions or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average costs for the paperwork that you are referring to is £350, in some situations it is in excess of £800. The management information fee demanded by the landlord must be accompanied by a summary of entitlements and obligations in respect of administration fees, otherwise the charge is not strictly payable. In reality you have no option but to pay whatever is demanded should you wish to exchange contracts with the buyer.

Redruth Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Sample of Queries Prior to buying

The best form of lease arrangement is if the freehold title is in the ownership of the leaseholders. In this scenario the tenants benefit from being in charge if their destiny and although a managing agent is often employed where the building is bigger than a house conversion, the managing agent employed by the leaseholders. Generally speaking the outlay for major works are not included within service charges, although a few managing agents in Redruth ask leaseholders to pay into a sinking fund and this is used to offset against larger repairs or maintenance. Who are the managing agents?

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Redruth