Leasehold Conveyancing in St Mawes - Get a Quote from the leasehold experts approved by your lender

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Leasehold conveyancing in St Mawes is more complex than freehold. Your home move will be smoother where you choose a lawyer with a wealth of experience of leasehold conveyancing in St Mawes and throughout next step up in loc. The lawyers we recommend have been approved by your lender so use our search tool to check.

Common questions relating to St Mawes leasehold conveyancing

I only have 72 years unexpired on my flat in St Mawes. I now wish to get lease extension but my freeholder is missing. What are my options?

If 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 enable the lease to be granted an extra 90 years by the magistrate. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have done all that could be expected to find the lessor. For most situations an enquiry agent may be useful to carry out a search and prepare a report to be used as evidence that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a solicitor both on proving the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing St Mawes.

I've found a house that seems to tick a lot of boxes, at a great figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have just found out that the title is leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are particular concerns purchasing a house with a leasehold title in St Mawes. Conveyancing advisers have are soon to be instructed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in St Mawes are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area can help the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are purchasing in St Mawes so you should seriously consider looking for a St Mawes conveyancing solicitor and check that they have experience in dealing with leasehold houses. As a matter of priority 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 comes with conditions for example requiring the landlord’spermission to carry out alterations. You may also be required to pay a service charge towards the upkeep of the communal areas where the house is part of an estate. Your lawyer will appraise you on the various issues.

I've recently bought a leasehold property in St Mawes. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before my ownership?

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. However, 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 a negotiator for a long established estate agency in St Mawes where we have witnessed a few leasehold sales derailed as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given conflicting advice from local St Mawes conveyancing solicitors. Please can you clarify whether the vendor of a flat can start the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

As long as the seller has owned the lease 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. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser need not have to wait 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.

Alternatively, it may be possible 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 buyer.

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in St Mawes with the aim of expediting the sale process?

  • A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in St Mawes can be avoided where you appoint lawyers the minute you market your property and request that they start to collate the leasehold documentation which will be required by the purchasers’ representatives.
  • Many landlords or managing agents in St Mawes charge for providing management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the actual amount of the charges. The management information sought as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. The typical amount of time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most frequent cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in St Mawes.
  • A minority of St Mawes leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, it would be prudent to notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. Any bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are able to meet the annual 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 solicitors.
  • If you hold a share in a the Management Company, you should ensure that you have the original share certificate. Obtaining a re-issued share certificate is often a time consuming process and frustrates many a St Mawes home move. Where a duplicate share certificate is required, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (where applicable) for this as soon as possible.
  • You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but it would be advisable double-check by asking your solicitors. A buyer’s conveyancer will be unlikely to recommend their client to to exchange contracts if the lease term is under 80 years. It is therefore important at an early stage that you identify whether the lease term requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

    • I bought a 1st floor flat in St Mawes, conveyancing having been completed 5 years ago. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Similar properties in St Mawes with a long lease are worth £199,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 levied per year. The lease expires on 21st October 2095

    You have 72 years left to run the likely cost is going to range between £10,500 and £12,000 plus professional fees.

    The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs without more comprehensive due diligence. You should not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt additional concerns that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward based on this information before getting professional advice.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in St Mawes