Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Sale:

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Any conveyancing solicitor can theoretically handle your leasehold conveyancing in Sale, your mortgage provider may not be willing to work with them if the firm are not on their list of approved solicitors for conveyancing

Recently asked questions relating to Sale leasehold conveyancing

I've found a house that appears to tick a lot of boxes, at a great price which is making it more attractive. I have just been informed that the title is leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are particular concerns buying a leasehold house in Sale. Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been appointed. Will my lawyers set out the risks of buying a leasehold house in Sale ?

Most houses in Sale are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can help the conveyancing process. We note that you are buying in Sale in which case you should be shopping around for a Sale conveyancing practitioner and be sure that they are used to advising on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. Being a lessee you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want to the property. The lease will likely included provisions such as requiring the landlord’spermission to conduct changes to the property. You may also be required to pay a contribution towards the maintenance of the estate where the property is part of an estate. Your solicitor will advise you fully on all the issues.

Last month I purchased a leasehold house in Sale. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to my ownership?

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. However, 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).

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Sale from the perspective of saving time on the sale process?

  • A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Sale can be reduced where you instruct lawyers the minute your agents start advertising the property and ask them to put together the leasehold information needed by the purchasers’ solicitors.
  • A minority of Sale leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (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 purchasers or their solicitors.
  • If there is a history of any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved before the property is marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where there is a current dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to 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 ahead of 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 reveal the dispute as historic as opposed to unresolved.
  • If you have the benefit of shareholding in the Management Company, you should ensure that you hold the original share certificate. Arranging a new share certificate can be a lengthy process and frustrates many a Sale conveyancing deal. If a duplicate share is required, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (where relevant) for this as soon as possible.
  • You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be advisable double-check via your lawyers. A purchaser's conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to to exchange contracts if the remaining number of years is less than 75 years. In the circumstances it is essential at an early stage that you identify whether the lease requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

    • We expect to complete our sale of a £325000 garden flat in Sale in just under a week. The freeholder has quoted £384 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and previous years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge such fees for a leasehold conveyance in Sale?

    Sale conveyancing on leasehold flats usually necessitates the buyer’s lawyer submitting enquiries for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to answer these enquiries most will be willing to assist. They may invoice a reasonable administration fee for responding to enquiries 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 is above £800. The administration charge levied by the landlord must be accompanied by a summary of rights and obligations in relation to administration charges, otherwise the charge is not strictly payable. In reality one has no option but to pay whatever is demanded should you wish to sell the property.

    In relation to leasehold conveyancing in Sale what are the most frequent lease problems?

    Leasehold conveyancing in Sale is not unique. All leases is drafted differently and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain provisions are erroneous. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

    • Repairing obligations to or maintain elements of the property
    • Insurance obligations
    • 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

    A defective lease will likely cause problems when trying to sell a property as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Barclays , Virgin Money, and Godiva Mortgages Ltd 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 does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to provide security, forcing the buyer to pull out.

    I acquired a studio flat in Sale, conveyancing having been completed half a dozen years ago. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Corresponding flats in Sale with a long lease are worth £176,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £65 levied per year. The lease finishes on 21st October 2093

    You have 72 years unexpired we estimate the price of your lease extension to be between £8,600 and £9,800 plus costs.

    The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed investigations. Do not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional concerns that need to be considered and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward placing reliance on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Sale