Experts for Leasehold Conveyancing in St Ives

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When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in St Ives, you will need to appoint a conveyancing solicitor with leasehold experience. Whether your mortgage company is to be Halifax, RBS or Bradford & Bingley be sure to choose a lawyer on their panel. Find a St Ives conveyancing lawyer with our search tool

Frequently asked questions relating to St Ives leasehold conveyancing

Looking forward to sign contracts shortly on a basement flat in St Ives. Conveyancing solicitors have said that they are sending me a report on Monday. What should I be looking out for?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in St Ives should include some of the following:

  • You should be sent a copy of the lease
  • Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, landlord
  • Does the lease prevent you from letting out the property, or having a home office for business
  • You need to be told what constitutes a Nuisance in the lease
  • An explanation as to the provision in the lease to pay service charges - with regard to both the building, and the more general rights a leaseholder has
  • Repair and maintenance of the flat
  • The landlord’s obligations to repair and maintain the building. It is important that you know who is responsible for the repair and maintenance of every part of the building For a comprehensive list of information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in St Ives please ask your conveyancer in ahead of your conveyancing in St Ives

    • My wife and I purchased a leasehold flat in St Ives. Conveyancing and Leeds Building Society mortgage are in place. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1995. The conveyancing practitioner in St Ives who acted for me is not around.Do I pay?

    First make enquiries of HMLR to be sure that this person is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a St Ives conveyancing lawyer to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for £3. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

    I am looking at a two maisonettes in St Ives which have about forty five years left on the leases. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

    A lease is a right to use the premises for a period of time. As the lease shortens the value of the lease reduces and it becomes more expensive to acquire a lease extension. For this reason it is advisable to increase the term of the lease. Sometimes it is difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease as mortgage lenders may be unwilling to lend money on such properties. Lease extension can be a protracted process. We recommend you get professional help from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this field

    Can you offer any advice when it comes to choosing a St Ives conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?

    When appointing a solicitor for your lease extension (regardless if they are a St Ives conveyancing firm) it is essential that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We suggested that you speak with several firms including non St Ives conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be useful:

    • If the firm is not ALEP accredited then what is the reason?
  • Can they put you in touch with client in St Ives who can give a testimonial?

    • Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in St Ives from the perspective of speeding up the sale process?

    • A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in St Ives can be avoided where you get in touch lawyers the minute you market your property and ask them to collate the leasehold documentation needed by the purchasers’ representatives.
    • In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s consent? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Most leases in St Ives state that internal structural changes or laying down wooden flooring necessitate a licence issued by the Landlord consenting to such alterations. If you fail to have the consents to hand do not communicate with the landlord without contacting your solicitor in advance.
  • A minority of St Ives leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this is the case, it would be prudent to place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers put in hand financial (bank) and professional references. Any bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are 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 service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their lawyers.
  • If you have had any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are settled before the property is put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where a dispute is unsettled. You will have to accept that you will have to 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 will still have to reveal details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to present the dispute as historic rather than unresolved.
  • You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but you should verify this via your solicitors. A buyer’s lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to to exchange contracts if the lease term is less than 80 years. In the circumstances it is important at an early stage that you consider whether the lease requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

    • I bought a 1 bedroom flat in St Ives, conveyancing formalities finalised half a dozen years ago. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Comparable flats in St Ives with an extended lease are worth £250,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £60 levied per year. The lease expires on 21st October 2094

    With 71 years remaining on your lease we estimate the premium for your lease extension to range between £11,400 and £13,200 plus legals.

    The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to supply the actual costs in the absence of comprehensive due diligence. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be additional concerns that need to be taken into account and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward based on this information before getting professional advice.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in St Ives