Planning to exchange soon on a leasehold property in Shotton. Conveyancing solicitors have said that they are sending me a report on Monday. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Shotton should include some of the following:

• You should receive a copy of the lease

The unexpired lease term You should be advised as what happens when the lease ends, and aware of the importance of not letting the lease term falling below eighty years

Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, landlord

Defining your legal entitlements in respect of the communal areas in the block.E.G., does the lease provide for a right of way over a path or staircase?

Does the lease prohibit wood flooring?

Ground rent - how much and when you need to pay, and also know whether this will change in the future

Changes to the flat (alterations and additions) For a comprehensive list of information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Shotton please ask your solicitor in ahead of your conveyancing in Shotton

I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that seems to be perfect, at a reasonable figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have subsequently discovered that the title is leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are issues buying a leasehold house in Shotton. Conveyancing advisers have are about to be instructed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Shotton are freehold rather than leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can help the conveyancing process. it is apparent that you are purchasing in Shotton in which case you should be shopping around for a Shotton conveyancing practitioner and check that they are used to transacting on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. As a leaseholder you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions such as obtaining the freeholder’spermission to carry out alterations. It may be necessary to pay a maintenance charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the property is part of an estate. Your conveyancer will report to you on the legal implications.

I am a negotiator for a busy estate agent office in Shotton where we have experienced a few flat sales derailed as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given contradictory information from local Shotton conveyancing firms. Could you clarify whether the seller of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

As long as the seller has been the owner 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 has to be done before, 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 buyer.

What are your top tips when it comes to choosing a Shotton conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a solicitor for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Shotton conveyancing firm) it is most important that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We recommend that you speak with several firms including non Shotton conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice 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?

Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on the disposal of our £475000 maisonette in Shotton in just under a week. The management company has quoted £336 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and previous years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in Shotton?

For most leasehold sales in Shotton conveyancing will involve, queries regarding the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :

• Completing pre-exchange enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in Shotton
• Copies of the building insurance and schedule
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your lawyer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Shotton leasehold property is £350. For Shotton conveyancing transactions it is customary for the seller to pay for these costs. The landlord or their agents are under no legal obligation to answer such questions most will be willing to do so - albeit often at exorbitant prices where the fees bear little relation to the work involved. Unfortunately there is no law that requires fixed charges for administrative tasks. Neither is there any legal time frame by which they are required to provide answers.

Shotton Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Queries Prior to buying

Is anyone aware of any major works on the horizon that will increase the service charges? Where a Shotton lease has less than eighty years it will impact the salability of the property. Check with your mortgage company that they are willing to go ahead with the loan given the lease term. Leases with less than 80 years remaining means that you will probably have to extend the lease at some point and it is worth discovering what this will be. For most Shottonlease extensions you will be required to have owned the residence for 24 months before you are eligible to extend the lease. Who are the managing agents?

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Shotton