Frequently asked questions relating to Street leasehold conveyancing
I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Street. Before diving in I would like to find out the unexpired term of the lease.
If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and almost all are in Street - 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.
My partner and I may need to rent out our Street garden flat temporarily due to a career opportunity. We used a Street conveyancing practice in 2003 but they have closed and we did not have the foresight to seek any advice as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?
The lease dictates relations between the freeholder and you the flat owner; specifically, it will say if subletting is prohibited, or permitted but only subject to certain conditions. The rule is that if the lease contains no expres ban or restriction, subletting is permitted. Most leases in Street do not prevent subletting altogether – such a provision would adversely affect the market value the flat. Instead, there is usually simply a requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly supplying a duplicate of the tenancy agreement.
Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only 72 years remaining on my lease in Street. I am keen to get lease extension but my landlord is absent. What options are available to me?
If you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be granted an extra 90 years by the magistrate. However, you will be required to prove that you have made all reasonable attempts to find the landlord. In some cases an enquiry agent should be helpful to carry out a search and prepare an expert document to be accepted by the court as evidence that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a property lawyer in relation to investigating the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court covering Street.
I am employed by a busy estate agency in Street where we have witnessed a few leasehold sales put at risk as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Street conveyancing firms. Can you confirm whether the seller of a flat can start the lease extension formalities 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 kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the buyer need not have 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 prior to, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.
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 purchaser.
All being well we will complete our sale of a £350000 garden flat in Street on Thursday in a week. The landlords agents has quoted £336 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and 3 years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in Street?
Street conveyancing on leasehold apartments often necessitates the purchaser’s lawyer submitting questions for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is not legally bound to respond to such questions most will be willing to do so. They may charge a reasonable charge for responding to enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average fee for the paperwork that you are referring to is £350, in some cases it is in excess of £800. The management information fee required by the landlord must be sent together with a summary of entitlements and obligations in relation to administration fees, without which the charge is technically not due. In reality one has little choice but to pay whatever is demanded should you wish to sell the property.
I bought a 1st floor flat in Street, conveyancing formalities finalised 10 years ago. Can you shed any light on how much the price could be for a 90 year extension to my lease? Equivalent properties in Street with over 90 years remaining are worth £238,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 invoiced annually. The lease expires on 21st October 2083
With only 58 years remaining on your lease we estimate the price of your lease extension to range between £22,800 and £26,400 plus professional fees.
The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to provide the actual costs without more detailed investigations. Do not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other concerns that need to be considered and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not take any other action based on this information without first getting professional advice.
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