Sample questions relating to South West London leasehold conveyancing
My wife and I purchased a leasehold flat in South West London. Conveyancing and Birmingham Midshires mortgage went though with no issue. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1997. The conveyancing practitioner in South West London who previously acted has now retired.Do I pay?
The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to be sure that this person is indeed the new freeholder. There is no need to instruct a South West London conveyancing practitioner to do this as it can be done on-line for £3. You should note that regardless, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.
I am attracted to a two apartments in South West London both have about forty five years unexpired on the lease term. Will this present a problem?
A lease is a right to use the property for a prescribed time frame. As the lease shortens the marketability of the lease decreases and results in it becoming more costly to extend the lease. This is why it is often a good idea to extend the lease term. More often than not it is difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease as mortgage companies less inclined to grant a loan on properties of this type. Lease extension can be a difficult process. We recommend you seek professional assistance from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this field
Last month I purchased a leasehold house in South West London. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to completion of my purchase?
Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. Strange as it may seem, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. It is an essential part of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to ensure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.
If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).
I am employed by a long established estate agency in South West London where we have experienced a number of leasehold sales derailed due to short leases. I have been given inconsistent advice from local South West London conveyancing firms. Could you confirm whether the vendor of a flat can initiate the lease extension process for the buyer?
Provided that the seller has owned the lease 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 prior to, or at the same time as completion of the sale.
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.
What advice can you give us when it comes to choosing a South West London conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?
When appointing a conveyancer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a South West London conveyancing practice) it is imperative that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We advise that you speak with several firms including non South West London conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions could be helpful:
- How experienced is the practice with lease extension legislation?
I have had difficulty in trying to purchase the freehold in South West London. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal adjudicate on premiums?
in cases where there is a absentee freeholder or where there is dispute about the premium for a lease extension, under the relevant legislation you can apply to the LVT to decide the premium.
An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement case for a South West London flat is 78 & 80 Newport Road in January 2013. the Tribunal concluded that the premium to be paid by the leaseholder in respect of the freehold reversion is £23,105 This case related to 2 flats. The the number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 71.63 years.
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