I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Saffron Walden. Before I set the wheels in motion I require certainty as to the remaining lease term.

If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and most are in Saffron Walden - then the leasehold title will always include the basic details 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.

Back In 2000, I bought a leasehold flat in Saffron Walden. Conveyancing and Norwich and Peterborough Building Society mortgage are in place. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1991. The conveyancing solicitor in Saffron Walden who previously acted has long since retired.What should I do?

First make enquiries of HMLR to be sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is in fact the new freeholder. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Saffron Walden conveyancing lawyer to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for a few pound. You should note that regardless, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Saffron Walden from the perspective of expediting the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Saffron Walden can be reduced where you appoint lawyers as soon as you market your property and ask them to collate the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers representatives.
• If you have carried out any alterations to the property would they have required Landlord’s consent? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Saffron Walden state that internal structural changes or installing wooden flooring necessitate a licence issued by the Landlord approving such works. Where you fail to have the paperwork in place you should not communicate with the landlord without checking with your lawyer in advance.

If you have had any disputes 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 a dispute is unsettled. You may have to bite the bullet and pay any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. 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 better to present the dispute as historic rather than unresolved.

If you hold a share in a the freehold, you should ensure that you are holding the original share certificate. Organising a replacement share certificate can be a time consuming process and delays many a Saffron Walden home move. Where a duplicate share is required, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (if relevant) for this sooner rather than later.

You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but it would be advisable verify this by asking your conveyancers. A buyer’s lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to to exchange contracts if the lease term is less than 80 years. In the circumstances it is important at an as soon as possible that you identify whether the lease term for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

We expect to complete the sale of our £225000 apartment in Saffron Walden in seven days. The freeholder has quoted £420 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and 3 years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in Saffron Walden?

Saffron Walden conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes normally results in administration charges invoiced by landlords agents :

• Completing pre-exchange questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Saffron Walden
• 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 Saffron Walden leasehold premises is £350. For Saffron Walden 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 required to provide the information.

Are there common deficiencies that you encounter in leases for Saffron Walden properties?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Saffron Walden. All leases is drafted differently and drafting errors can sometimes mean that certain clauses are wrong. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• Repairing obligations 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.
• Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

You may encounter 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. Birmingham Midshires, Bank of Scotland, and Britannia all have very detailed requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is problematic they may refuse to provide security, obliging the purchaser to pull out.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Saffron Walden - A selection of Questions you should ask Prior to buying

You will want to discover as much as possible regarding the company managing the block as they will either make life much simpler or uncomfortable. As the proprietor of a leasehold property you will be at the mercy of the managing agents from a financial perspective and when it comes to every day issues like the upkeep of the common parts. Enquire of prospective neighbours what they think of them. Finally, find out the dates that the service fees are due to the managing agents and specifically what it includes. Where a Saffron Walden lease has less than 80 years it will have adverse implications on the marketability of the apartment. It is worth checking with your bank that they are happy with the length of the lease. A short lease means that you will almost definitely need a lease extension at some point and you need to have some idea of how much this will be. For most Saffron Waldenlease extensions you will need to own the residence for two years before you are entitled to carry out a lease extension. The best form of lease structure is where the freehold interest is owned by the leaseholders. In this scenario the tenants enjoy control and notwithstanding that a managing agent is usually retained where it is bigger than a house conversion, the managing agent retained by the leaseholders.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Saffron Walden