Experts for Leasehold Conveyancing in Rumney

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While any conveyancing solicitor can theoretically handle your leasehold conveyancing in Rumney, 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 Rumney leasehold conveyancing

I’m about to sell my 2 bed apartment in Rumney.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just received a yearly maintenance charge invoice – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

It best that you pay the service charge as normal because all ground rent and service charges will be apportioned on completion, so you will be reimbursed by the buyer for the period running from after the completion date to the next payment date. Most management companies will not acknowledge the buyer until the service charges have been paid and are up to date so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a couple of apartments in Rumney both have about fifty years unexpired on the lease term. Do I need to be concerned?

There are plenty of short leases in Rumney. The lease is a right to use the premises for a prescribed time frame. As a lease gets shorter the saleability of the lease deteriorate and results in it becoming more costly to acquire a lease extension. For this reason it is advisable to increase the term of the lease. It is often difficult to sell a property with a short lease because mortgage companies less inclined to grant a loan on such properties. Lease extension can be a difficult process. We advise that you get professional assistance from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this arena

Last month I purchased a leasehold property in Rumney. 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 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).

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Rumney with the aim of saving time on the sale process?

  • A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Rumney can be reduced if you appoint lawyers as soon as you market your property and request that they start to collate the leasehold documentation needed by the buyers lawyers.
  • Many landlords or managing agents in Rumney levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should find out the actual amount of the charges. The management pack can be applied for as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. The typical amount of time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most common cause of frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Rumney.
  • A minority of Rumney leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this is the case, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. Any bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are financially capable of paying 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 very important that these are resolved before the property is marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where there is an ongoing dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to 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 are still duty bound to disclose details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to present the dispute as over as opposed to unsettled.
  • If you are supposed to have a share in the Management Company, you should ensure that you hold the original share document. Organising a duplicate share certificate can be a time consuming formality and slows down many a Rumney home move. Where a new share certificate is required, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (where relevant) for this as soon as possible.

    • When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Rumney what are the most frequent lease problems?

    There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Rumney. All leases are individual and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain sections are not included. 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 premises
    • A duty to insure the building
    • Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
    • Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

    A defective lease can cause problems when trying to sell a property primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. National Westminster Bank, The Mortgage Works, and Platform Home Loans Ltd all have express conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is defective they may refuse to provide security, forcing the buyer to withdraw.

    Leasehold Conveyancing in Rumney - Sample of Queries Prior to buying

      In the main the outlay for major works tend not to be included within maintenance charges, although some managing agents in Rumney ask leaseholders to pay into a sinking fund created for the specific intention of building a fund for major repairs or maintenance. Make sure you find out if there are any onerous prohibitions in the lease. For example plenty of leases prohibit pets being allowed in certain buildings in Rumney. If you like the apartmentin Rumney yet your cat is not allowed to move with you then you will be faced hard choice. It is important to be aware whether fixing the lift or some other significant cost is due in the foreseeable future to be shared amongst the tenants and will dramatically increase the the maintenance charges or require a one time payment.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Rumney