Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Salford:

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Leasehold conveyancing in Salford is more complex than freehold. Your home move will be smoother where you choose a lawyer with a wealth of experience of leasehold conveyancing in Salford and throughout next step up in loc. The lawyers we recommend have been approved by your lender so use our search tool to check.

Examples of recent questions relating to leasehold conveyancing in Salford

I am intending to let out my leasehold apartment in Salford. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask him. Is permission from the freeholder required?

A small minority of properties in Salford 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 review references. Experience suggests 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 permission.

Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only Seventy years left on my flat in Salford. I now want to get lease extension but my landlord is absent. What are my options?

If you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be granted an extra 90 years by the Court. You will be obliged to prove that you have done all that could be expected to locate the landlord. For most situations a specialist should be useful to try and locate and prepare a report to be accepted by the court as evidence that the freeholder can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer both on investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing Salford.

I own a leasehold flat in Salford. Conveyancing and The Mortgage Works mortgage are in place. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the freehold. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1992. The conveyancing solicitor in Salford who acted for me is not around.Any advice?

First make enquiries of the Land Registry to make sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is in fact the new freeholder. There is no need to instruct a Salford conveyancing firm to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for a few pound. You should note that in any event, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

I am attracted to a couple of apartments in Salford which have approximately forty five years unexpired on the leases. Do I need to be concerned?

A lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the property for a prescribed time frame. As the lease gets shorter the saleability of the lease decreases and it becomes more expensive to acquire a lease extension. For this reason it is often a good idea to extend the lease term. Sometimes it is difficult to sell a property with a short lease because mortgage lenders less inclined to grant a loan on such properties. Lease enfranchisement can be a difficult process. We advise that you get professional assistance from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this arena

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Salford with the intention of speeding up the sale process?

  • A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Salford can be reduced if you appoint lawyers the minute you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold information needed by the purchasers’ representatives.
  • If you have carried out any alterations to the property would they have required Landlord’s approval? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Salford leases often stipulate that internal structural changes or installing wooden flooring calls for a licence from the Landlord acquiescing to such works. Where you dont have the paperwork in place do not contact the landlord without checking with your solicitor in the first instance.
  • If you have had any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved prior to the flat being put on the market. The buyers and their solicitors will be warry about purchasing a property where there is an ongoing dispute. You may need to swallow your pride and 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 ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal particulars of the dispute to the buyers, but it is clearly preferable to present the dispute as over as opposed to unresolved.
  • If you are supposed to have a share in the Management Company, you should make sure that you are holding the original share document. Obtaining a duplicate share certificate can be a time consuming process and frustrates many a Salford home move. If a reissued 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 left on your lease but you should verify this via your lawyers. A purchaser's conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the remaining number of years is less than 80 years. In the circumstances it is important at an early stage that you consider whether the lease term for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

    • I purchased a leasehold flat in Salford, conveyancing having been completed 1998. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Comparable properties in Salford with over 90 years remaining are worth £265,000. The ground rent is £55 invoiced annually. The lease ceases on 21st October 2104

    You have 79 years unexpired we estimate the premium for your lease extension to span between £8,600 and £9,800 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

    The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to supply a more accurate figure without more detailed due diligence. Do not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt other concerns that need to be taken into account and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward placing reliance on this information without first getting professional advice.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Salford