Guaranteed fixed fees for Leasehold Conveyancing in Shotley Bridge

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When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Shotley Bridge, you will need to chose a conveyancing solicitor with leasehold experience. Whether your mortgage company is to be Lloyds, Birmingham Midshires or NatWest be sure to find a lawyer on their approved list. Find a Shotley Bridge conveyancing lawyer with our search tool

Examples of recent questions relating to leasehold conveyancing in Shotley Bridge

My partner and I may need to let out our Shotley Bridge garden flat temporarily due to a new job. We used a Shotley Bridge conveyancing firm in 2003 but they have since shut and we did not think at the time get any guidance as to whether the lease prohibits the subletting of the flat. How do we find out?

Notwithstanding that your previous Shotley Bridge conveyancing solicitor is not around you can review your lease to see if you are permitted to let out the premises. The accepted inference is that if the deeds are silent, subletting is allowed. There may be a precondition that you need to seek consent from your landlord or some other party prior to subletting. This means that you cannot sublet in the absence of first obtaining permission. The consent must not not be unreasonably turned down. If the lease prohibits you from subletting the property you will need to ask your landlord for their consent.

Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only 62 years remaining on my flat in Shotley Bridge. I need to get lease extension but my freeholder 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 an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be lengthened by the magistrate. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you have made all reasonable attempts to find the landlord. On the whole a specialist should be useful to conduct investigations and to produce a report to be accepted by the court as evidence that the freeholder can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a solicitor both on proving the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Shotley Bridge.

Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my garden apartment in Shotley Bridge.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just had a quarterly maintenance charge invoice – what should I do?

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. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

What are your top tips when it comes to finding a Shotley Bridge conveyancing firm to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

If you are instructing a solicitor for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Shotley Bridge conveyancing practice) it is imperative that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We suggested that you make enquires with several firms including non Shotley Bridge conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions might be of use:

  • How experienced is the firm with lease extension legislation?
  • What are the costs for lease extension conveyancing?

    • Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Shotley Bridge from the point of view of speeding up the sale process?

    • A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Shotley Bridge can be avoided if you appoint lawyers as soon as you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers lawyers.
    • In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s permission? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Most leases in Shotley Bridge state that internal structural changes or addition of wooden flooring calls for a licence from the Landlord acquiescing to such works. Should you fail to have the approvals to hand do not communicate with the landlord without contacting your conveyancer in the first instance.
  • A minority of Shotley Bridge leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this is the case, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is able to meet 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 buyers or their lawyers.
  • If you have had conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are settled prior to the flat being marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where a dispute is unsettled. You may need to swallow your pride and discharge any arrears of service charge or resolve 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 buyers, but it is better to present the dispute as historic as opposed to unsettled.
  • If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should make sure that you are holding the original share certificate. Obtaining a duplicate share certificate can be a time consuming process and slows down many a Shotley Bridge conveyancing transaction. If a reissued share certificate is required, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (where relevant) for this at the earliest opportunity.

    • Shotley Bridge Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Questions you should consider Prior to buying

      Plenty Shotley Bridge leasehold flats will have a service charge for the upkeep of the building invoiced on behalf of the management company. Where you acquire the flat you will have to pay this contribution, normally quarterly throughout the year. This could differ from a couple of hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for large purpose-built buildings. There will also be a ground rent for you to pay annual, ordinarily this is not a exorbitant sum, say approximately £50-£100 but you need to check as on occasion it could be many hundreds of pounds. This question is important as a) areas can result in problems in the block as the communal areas may begin to deteriorate where maintenance are not paid for b) if the leasehold owners have a dispute with the running of the building you will need to have all the details You should be aware that where the lease has fewer than eighty years it will have adverse implications on the marketability of the property. Check with your mortgage company that they are willing to to proceed given the lease term. Leases with fewer than 80 years remaining means that you will most likely have to extend the lease at some point and it is worth discovering how much this would cost. Remember, in most cases you would need to own the residence for 24 months before you are eligible to extend the lease.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Shotley Bridge