Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my basement flat in Sacriston.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just received a yearly service charge invoice – what should I do?

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. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

Back In 2007, I bought a leasehold flat in Sacriston. Conveyancing and Yorkshire Building Society mortgage are in place. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the freehold. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1991. The conveyancing solicitor in Sacriston who acted for me is not around.What should I do?

First make enquiries of HMLR to make sure that this person is in fact the new freeholder. There is no need to instruct a Sacriston conveyancing practitioner to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for £3. 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.

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a two maisonettes in Sacriston both have approximately fifty years remaining on the lease term. Will this present a problem?

There are no two ways about it. A leasehold apartment in Sacriston is a deteriorating asset as a result of the shortening lease. The closer the lease gets to its expiry date, the more it reduces the marketability of the property. The majority of buyers and banks, leases with under eighty years become less and less attractive. On a more upbeat note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the property for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of a residence with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Sacriston conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. A more straightforward and quicker method of extending would be to contact your landlord directly and sound him out on the prospect of extending the lease You may find he or she is happy to negotiate informally and willing to consider your offer straight off, without having to involve anyone else. This will save you time and money and it could help you reach a lower price on the lease. You need to ensure that any new terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Sacriston with the intention of speeding up the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Sacriston can be avoided if you appoint lawyers as soon as you market your property and request that they start to collate the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers lawyers.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s consent? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Most leases in Sacriston state that internal structural changes or installing wooden flooring necessitate a licence issued by the Landlord consenting to such changes. Where you dont have the paperwork in place you should not contact the landlord without contacting your lawyer in advance.

Completion in due on the disposal of our £275000 garden flat in Sacriston next week. The managing agents has quoted £348 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 Sacriston?

Sacriston conveyancing on leasehold flats usually necessitates the buyer’s solicitor submitting questions for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is not legally bound to address such questions most will be content to do so. They may levy a reasonable administration fee for responding to questions or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average costs for the paperwork that you are referring to is £350, in some cases it exceeds £800. The administration charge invoiced by the landlord must be accompanied by a synopsis of rights and obligations in relation to administration charges, without which the invoice is technically not due. Reality however dictates that you have no option but to pay whatever is requested of you if you want to exchange contracts with the buyer.

I own a studio flat in Sacriston, conveyancing was carried out in 2000. How much will my lease extension cost? Corresponding flats in Sacriston with a long lease are worth £266,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £60 levied per year. The lease runs out on 21st October 2092

You have 70 years remaining on your lease the likely cost is going to be between £10,500 and £12,000 plus costs.

The figure above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to supply a more accurate figure without more detailed investigations. You should not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional concerns that need to be taken into account and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action placing reliance on this information without first getting professional advice.

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Lease Extensions in Sacriston