Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in St Athan:

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St Athan leasehold conveyancing Example Support Desk Enquiries

I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in St Athan. Before diving in I require certainty as to the remaining lease term.

Assuming the lease is registered - and most are in St Athan - then the leasehold title will always include the short particulars of the lease, namely the date; the term; and the original parties. From a conveyancing perspective such details then enable any prospective buyer and lender to confirm that any lease they are looking at is the one relevant to that title.For any other purpose, such as confirming how long the term was granted for and calculating what is left, then the register should be sufficient on it's own.

I have just started marketing my ground floor apartment in St Athan.Conveyancing has not commenced but I have just received a yearly maintenance charge demand – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

The sensible thing to do is 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 unless 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 work for a long established estate agent office in St Athan where we have experienced a number of flat sales derailed as a result of short leases. I have received conflicting advice from local St Athan conveyancing solicitors. Could you shed some light as to whether the vendor of a flat can commence the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

As long as the seller has been the owner 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 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 needs to be completed before, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

Alternatively, it may be possible 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 purchaser.

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in St Athan from the perspective of saving time on the sale process?

  • Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in St Athan can be bypassed where you instruct lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation needed by the buyers representatives.
  • Many freeholders or Management Companies in St Athan charge for providing management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should discover the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack sought on or before finding a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most frequent reason for frustration in leasehold conveyancing in St Athan.
  • A minority of St Athan leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, it would be prudent to 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 financially capable of paying 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 purchasers or their lawyers.
  • If you hold a share in a the Management Company, you should make sure that you are holding the original share document. Obtaining a replacement share certificate can be a lengthy process and frustrates many a St Athan home move. Where a reissued share certificate is needed, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (if applicable) for this at the earliest opportunity.
  • You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but it would be advisable verify this by asking your lawyers. A buyer’s lawyer will not be happy to advise their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the remaining number of years is less than 80 years. In the circumstances it is important at an as soon as possible that you identify whether the lease requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

    • What makes a St Athan lease unacceptable for security purposes?

    There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in St Athan. All leases are unique and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain provisions are missing. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

    • A provision to repair to or maintain parts of the premises
    • A duty to insure the building
    • 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 can cause problems when trying to sell a property primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Santander, Norwich and Peterborough Building Society, and Alliance & Leicester all have very detailed conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to grant the mortgage, forcing the purchaser to withdraw.

    St Athan Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Queries before Purchasing

      It would be wise to find out as much as you can about the managing agents as they will impact your use and enjoyment of the property. Being a leasehold owner you will be at the mercy of the managing agents both financially and when it comes to day to day issues like the tidiness of the communal areas. Ask other people if they are happy with them. In conclusion, be sure you know the dates that the maintenance fees are due to the relevant party and specifically what it includes. It is important to be aware if fixing the lift or some other significant cost is pending to be shared between the leaseholders and could well dramatically impact the level of the maintenance charges or result in a specific invoice. What is the annual maintenance fee and ground rent?

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in St Athan