Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Sea Mills:

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Sample questions relating to Sea Mills leasehold conveyancing

I would like to rent out my leasehold apartment in Sea Mills. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask her. Do I need to ask my freeholder for permission?

A small minority of properties in Sea Mills do contain a provision to say that subletting is only allowed with permission. The landlord cannot unreasonably refuse but, in such cases, they would need to see 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 consent.

I only have Sixty One years remaining on my flat in Sea Mills. I need to extend my lease but my landlord is can not be found. What options are available to me?

If you meet the appropriate requirements, 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 mean that your lease can be extended by the magistrate. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you have done all that could be expected to track down the landlord. For most situations a specialist may be helpful to carry out a search and prepare an expert document to be used as evidence that the landlord can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a property lawyer in relation to investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court covering Sea Mills.

Last month I purchased a leasehold house in Sea Mills. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to completion of my purchase?

Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner 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 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).

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Sea Mills with the purpose of speeding up the sale process?

  • A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Sea Mills can be avoided where you get in touch lawyers as soon as you market your property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information needed by the buyers conveyancers.
  • In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s consent? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Sea Mills leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or installing wooden flooring calls for a licence issued by the Landlord consenting to such changes. Should you fail to have the consents to hand you should not contact the landlord without contacting your solicitor before hand.
  • A minority of Sea Mills leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this is the case, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. The bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is 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 solicitors.
  • 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 purchasers and their solicitors will be nervous about purchasing a property where a dispute is unresolved. You may have to bite the bullet and pay 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 are still duty bound to disclose details of the dispute to the buyers, but it is better to reveal the dispute as over rather than unresolved.
  • You may think that you are aware of the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be wise to 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 lease term is below 75 years. In the circumstances it is essential at an early stage that you identify whether the lease for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale.

    • All being well we will complete the disposal of our £200000 flat in Sea Mills in seven days. The managing agents has quoted £300 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and 3 years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in Sea Mills?

    Sea Mills conveyancing on leasehold apartments often involves the purchaser’s lawyer submitting questions for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to address these enquiries most will be content to assist. They may invoice 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 transactions it exceeds £800. The administration charge demanded by the landlord must be accompanied by a summary of rights and obligations in respect of administration fees, otherwise the invoice is technically not due. Reality however dictates that you have no choice but to pay whatever is requested of you should you wish to exchange contracts with the buyer.

    Leasehold Conveyancing in Sea Mills - Sample of Queries Prior to buying

      This information is important as a) areas can cause problems for the building as the common areas may start to deteriorate if services remain unpaid b) if the leaseholders have an issue with the running of the building you will need to have all the details On the whole the cost for major works tend not to be included within maintenance charges, albeit that a few managing agents in Sea Mills require leaseholders to contribute towards a sinking fund created for the specific purpose of establishing a fund for major works. The prefered form of lease structure is a share of the freehold. In this scenario the tenants benefit from being in charge if their destiny and even though a managing agent is often employed where it is bigger than a house conversion, the managing agent acts for the leaseholders themselves.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Sea Mills