Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Shepshed:

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Shepshed leasehold conveyancing Example Support Desk Enquiries

Planning to exchange soon on a leasehold property in Shepshed. Conveyancing solicitors inform me that they will have a report out to me next week. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Shepshed should include some of the following:

  • You should receive a copy of the lease
  • The length of the lease term You should be advised as what happens when the lease expires, and informed of the importance of the 80 year mark
  • The total extent of the premises. This will be the property itself but could also include a loft or cellar if appropriate.
  • Whether your lease has a provision for a sinking fund?
  • Repair and maintenance of the flat
  • Changes to the flat (alterations and additions)
  • What the implications are if you breach a clause of your lease? For details of the information to be included in your report on your leasehold property in Shepshed please enquire of your solicitor in ahead of your conveyancing in Shepshed

    • I’m about to sell my basement flat in Shepshed.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just had a yearly service charge invoice – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

    Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should clear the invoice 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 until 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 a negotiator for a long established estate agency in Shepshed where we see a few flat sales put at risk as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received contradictory information from local Shepshed conveyancing firms. Could you shed some light as to whether the seller of a flat can instigate the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

    As long as the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the buyer need not have to wait 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.

    An alternative approach is to agree the lease extension with the freeholder 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 buyer.

    Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Shepshed with the purpose of saving time on the sale process?

    • A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Shepshed can be avoided where you appoint lawyers the minute you market your property and request that they start to put together the leasehold documentation needed by the buyers lawyers.
    • If you have carried out any alterations to the premises would they have required Landlord’s consent? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Shepshed state that internal structural alterations or laying down wooden flooring calls for a licence issued by the Landlord approving such changes. If you dont have the approvals to hand do not communicate with the landlord without checking with your solicitor before hand.
  • A minority of Shepshed leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. The bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is able to meet 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 conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are settled before the property is put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be nervous about purchasing a flat where there is a current dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to discharge any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to reveal the dispute as over as opposed to unresolved.
  • If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should ensure that you have the original share certificate. Obtaining a re-issued share certificate is often a time consuming process and slows down many a Shepshed home move. If a new share is necessary, do contact the company officers or managing agents (where applicable) for this as soon as possible.

    • When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Shepshed what are the most frequent lease defects?

    There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Shepshed. All leases are unique and legal mistakes in the legal wording can result in certain clauses are missing. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

    • Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the property
    • Insurance obligations
    • Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
    • Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

    A defective lease will likely cause problems when trying to sell a property primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. HSBC Bank, Skipton Building Society, and Britannia all have very detailed conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is defective they may refuse to provide security, forcing the buyer to pull out.

    Shepshed Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Questions you should ask before buying

      Best to be warned if a new roof is being installed or some other major work is anticipated to be shared between the tenants and will dramatically increase the the maintenance fees or necessitate a one time invoice. How many of the leaseholders are in arrears for their service charge payments? Who is in charge of the building?

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Shepshed