Common questions relating to Sedgefield leasehold conveyancing
I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Sedgefield. Before I get started I require certainty as to the remaining lease term.
If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and 99.9% are in Sedgefield - then the leasehold title will always include the short particulars 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.
Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only 62 years left on my flat in Sedgefield. I now want to get lease extension but my landlord is missing. What should I do?
On the basis that 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 track down the landlord. In some cases an enquiry agent should be helpful to carry out a search and to produce a report to be used as evidence that the freeholder can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a solicitor both on devolving into the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court covering Sedgefield.
Looking forward to sign contracts shortly on a studio apartment in Sedgefield. Conveyancing solicitors assured me that they report fully tomorrow. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?
Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Sedgefield should include some of the following:
- You should receive a copy of the lease
I am looking at a two flats in Sedgefield which have about 50 years left on the lease term. Do I need to be concerned?
There are no two ways about it. A leasehold flat in Sedgefield is a wasting asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The nearer the lease gets to its expiry date, the more it reduces the value of the property. The majority of purchasers and banks, leases with under eighty years become less and less marketable. On a more upbeat note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the premises for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of premises with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Sedgefield conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. More often than not it is possible to negotiate informally with the freeholder to extend the lease They may agree to a smaller lump sum and an increase in the ground rent, but to shorter extension terms in return. You need to ensure that any new terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.
Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on our sale of a £275000 apartment in Sedgefield next Friday . The managing agents has quoted £312 for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and 3 years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge such fees for a leasehold conveyance in Sedgefield?
Sedgefield conveyancing on leasehold flats often involves the purchaser’s solicitor submitting enquiries for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to address such questions 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 fee for the information that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some transactions it exceeds £800. The management information fee demanded by the landlord must be accompanied by a synopsis of rights and obligations in respect of administration charges, without which the invoice is technically not due. In reality one has little choice but to pay whatever is requested of you should you wish to sell the property.
I own a basement flat in Sedgefield, conveyancing having been completed 9 years ago. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Similar properties in Sedgefield with an extended lease are worth £168,000. The ground rent is £65 invoiced every year. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2098
With 74 years left to run we estimate the premium for your lease extension to span between £10,500 and £12,000 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.
The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to advice on a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed investigations. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt 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 getting professional advice.
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