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Top Five Questions relating to Shefford leasehold conveyancing

My partner and I may need to rent out our Shefford garden flat temporarily due to taking a sabbatical. We used a Shefford conveyancing practice in 2003 but they have closed and we did not have the foresight to get any guidance as to whether the lease permits subletting. How do we find out?

Your lease dictates relations between the landlord and you the leaseholder; specifically, it will indicate if subletting is banned, or permitted but only subject to certain caveats. The accepted inference is that if the lease contains no expres ban or restriction, subletting is permitted. Most leases in Shefford do not prevent an absolute prevention of subletting – such a provision would adversely affect the market value the property. Instead, there is usually simply a requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly sending a duplicate of the sublease.

There are only 72 years unexpired on my lease in Shefford. I am keen to get lease extension but my freeholder is absent. What should I do?

If you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be granted an extra 90 years by the magistrate. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you have done all that could be expected to track down the landlord. In some cases an enquiry agent should be useful to carry out a search and to produce an expert document to be used as evidence that the freeholder can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a solicitor in relation to proving the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Shefford.

Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my 2 bed apartment in Shefford.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just received a half-yearly service charge demand – what should I do?

It best that you clear 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 managing agents 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. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that seems to meet my requirements, at a reasonable figure which is making it more attractive. I have subsequently found out that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are particular concerns buying a leasehold house in Shefford. Conveyancing advisers have are about to be appointed. Will they explain the issues?

Most houses in Shefford are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area can assist with the conveyancing process. We note that you are buying in Shefford so you should seriously consider looking for a Shefford conveyancing practitioner and check that they have experience in dealing with leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the unexpired lease term. As a lessee you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions such as requiring the landlord’spermission to conduct changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a service charge towards the upkeep of the estate where the house is part of an estate. Your conveyancer should appraise you on the various issues.

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Shefford with the aim of expediting the sale process?

  • Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Shefford can be avoided where you instruct lawyers the minute you market your property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers solicitors.
  • Many landlords or Management Companies in Shefford charge for providing management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should find out the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack sought on or before finding a buyer, thus reducing delays. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most common reason for frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Shefford.
  • A minority of Shefford leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this is the case, it would be prudent to place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. The bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is financially capable of paying the yearly 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 actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their lawyers.
  • If you are supposed to have a share in the Management Company, you should make sure that you hold the original share certificate. Arranging a re-issued share certificate can be a time consuming process and slows down many a Shefford home move. Where a reissued share certificate is needed, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (if applicable) for this at the earliest opportunity.
  • You may think that you are aware of the number of years left on your lease but it would be wise to verify this by asking your conveyancers. A purchaser's lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to where the lease term is below 80 years. In the circumstances it is important at an as soon as possible 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.

  • I am the registered owner of a studio flat in Shefford, conveyancing having been completed in 2001. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Similar properties in Shefford with a long lease are worth £184,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £45 yearly. The lease expires on 21st October 2099

    You have 75 years remaining on your lease we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £11,400 and £13,200 as well as 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 provide the actual costs in the absence of comprehensive due diligence. Do not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other issues that need to be taken into account and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward placing reliance on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Shefford