I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Seaton and Hartley. Before diving in I require certainty as to the unexpired term of the lease.

Assuming the lease is recorded at the land registry - and almost all are in Seaton and Hartley - 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.

I have just appointed agents to market my basement flat in Seaton and Hartley.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just had a yearly service charge demand – Do I pay up?

It best that you discharge 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 unless 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. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

I am employed by a long established estate agent office in Seaton and Hartley where we see a number of flat sales put at risk as a result of short leases. I have received conflicting advice from local Seaton and Hartley conveyancing solicitors. Can you confirm whether the seller of a flat can commence the lease extension process for the buyer?

Provided that the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the buyer can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or at the same time as completion of the sale.

An alternative approach is to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the purchaser.

What are your top tips when it comes to finding a Seaton and Hartley conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

When appointing a solicitor for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Seaton and Hartley conveyancing practice) it is most important that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We recommend that you make enquires with several firms including non Seaton and Hartley conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be helpful:

• If they are not ALEP accredited then what is the reason?

In relation to leasehold conveyancing in Seaton and Hartley what are the most frequent lease defects?

Leasehold conveyancing in Seaton and Hartley is not unique. All leases are unique and legal mistakes in the legal wording can result in certain provisions are missing. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• A provision to repair to or maintain elements of the building
• Insurance obligations
• A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
• Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

You may have difficulties when selling your property if you have a defective lease as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Lloyds TSB Bank, Norwich and Peterborough Building Society, and TSB all have express 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 withdraw.

Seaton and Hartley Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Sample of Queries Prior to Purchasing

Please note that where the lease has less than 80 years it will have adverse implications on the value of the property. Check with your bank that they are content with residual term of the lease. Leases with fewer than 80 years remaining means that you will almost definitely have to extend the lease sooner rather than later and you need to have some idea of how much this will be. Remember, in most cases you will be required to have been the owner of the residence for 24 months before you are entitled to carry out a lease extension. What is the name of the managing agents? On the whole the outlay for major works tend not to be built into the maintenance charges, although some managing agents in Seaton and Hartley ask leasehold owners to pay into a reserve fund created for the specific intention of establishing a fund for major repairs or maintenance.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Seaton and Hartley