Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Sneinton:

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When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Sneinton, you will need to instruct a conveyancing solicitor with leasehold experience. Whether your mortgage company is to be Santander, Birmingham Midshires or NatWest make sure you find a lawyer on their approved list. Feel free to use our search tool

Recently asked questions relating to Sneinton leasehold conveyancing

Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only 72 years remaining on my flat in Sneinton. I need to get lease extension but my freeholder is missing. What should I do?

On the basis that you meet the appropriate requirements, 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 mean that your lease can be lengthened by the Court. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you have made all reasonable attempts to track down the landlord. In some cases a specialist should be useful to try and locate and to produce a report which can be used as evidence that the landlord is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer both on devolving into the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court covering Sneinton.

I today plan to offer on a house that seems to meet my requirements, at a reasonable figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have subsequently been informed that the title is leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are issues purchasing a house with a leasehold title in Sneinton. Conveyancing solicitors have not yet been appointed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Sneinton are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local conveyancer used to dealing with such properties who can help the conveyancing process. We note that you are buying in Sneinton in which case you should be looking for a Sneinton conveyancing solicitor and check that they are used to transacting on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. Being a tenant you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions for example obtaining the freeholder’sconsent to carry out alterations. It may be necessary to pay a service charge towards the maintenance of the communal areas where the property is located on an estate. Your solicitor will appraise you on the various issues.

I am employed by a busy estate agent office in Sneinton where we have witnessed a few leasehold sales derailed as a result of short leases. I have received inconsistent advice from local Sneinton conveyancing firms. Can you confirm whether the owner of a flat can commence the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that 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 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 prior to, 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 purchaser.

Can you offer any advice when it comes to appointing a Sneinton conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a property lawyer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Sneinton conveyancing practice) it is most important that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We advise that you make enquires with several firms including non Sneinton conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be useful:

  • What volume of lease extensions have they conducted in Sneinton in the last 12 months?
  • What are the costs for lease extension work?

    • Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Sneinton from the point of view of speeding up the sale process?

    • A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Sneinton can be bypassed where you get in touch lawyers the minute your agents start marketing the property and ask them to collate the leasehold information which will be required by the purchasers’ conveyancers.
    • Many freeholders or Management Companies in Sneinton charge for providing management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should find out the actual amount of the charges. The management pack can be applied for as soon as you have a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The average time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most frequent reason for frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Sneinton.
  • If there is a history of any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are resolved before the property is put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be concerned about purchasing a flat where a dispute is ongoing. You may need to swallow your pride and pay 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 details of the dispute to the buyers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as over as opposed to unsettled.
  • If you are supposed to have a share in the Management Company, you should make sure that you have the original share certificate. Obtaining a replacement share certificate is often a lengthy process and slows down many a Sneinton home move. If a new share is required, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (where relevant) for this sooner rather than later.
  • You may think that you are aware of the number of years left on your lease but it would be advisable verify this via your conveyancers. A buyer’s lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to to exchange contracts if the remaining number of years is less than 80 years. In the circumstances it is essential at an early stage that you consider whether the lease requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale.

    • Leasehold Conveyancing in Sneinton - Examples of Queries before buying

      Can you inform me if there are any major works in the near future that will likely increase the service fees? Where a Sneinton lease has less than 80 years it will have adverse implications on the salability of the property. It is worth checking with your mortgage company that they are content with the length of the lease. Leases with less than 80 years remaining means that you will almost definitely have to extend the lease at some point and it is worth discovering what this would cost. Remember, in most cases you will be required to have owned the property for a couple of years before you are legally able to extend the lease. Many Sneinton leasehold properties will incur a service charge for maintenance of the building invoiced on behalf of the landlord. If you purchase the property you will have to meet this contribution, normally in instalments throughout the year. This could differ from several hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for blocks with lifts and large communal areas. In all probability there will be a rentcharge for you to pay annual, ordinarily this is not a significant sum, say about £25-£75 but you should to check it because occasionally it can be prohibitively expensive.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Sneinton