Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Swavesey:

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Examples of recent questions relating to leasehold conveyancing in Swavesey

I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Swavesey. Before I get started I require certainty as to the number of years remaining on the lease.

If the lease is registered - and almost all are in Swavesey - 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.

Harry (my fiance) and I may need to rent out our Swavesey garden flat temporarily due to a new job. We used a Swavesey conveyancing firm in 2004 but they have closed and we did not think at the time seek any guidance as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?

A small minority of properties in Swavesey do contain a provision to say that subletting is only permitted with prior consent from the landlord. The landlord cannot unreasonably withhold but, in such cases, they would need to review references. Experience suggests that problems are usually caused by unsatisfactory tenants rather than owner-occupiers and for that reason you can expect the freeholder to take up the references and consider them carefully before granting consent.

I've recently bought a leasehold property in Swavesey. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee 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 be sure 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).

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Swavesey with the aim of saving time on the sale process?

  • Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Swavesey can be avoided where you instruct lawyers as soon as you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold information needed by the purchasers’ lawyers.
  • The majority freeholders or Management Companies in Swavesey charge for supplying management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should discover the fee that they propose to charge. The management information can be applied for as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most usual reason for frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Swavesey.
  • If you have had conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are settled before the property is put on the market. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where a dispute is unsettled. You may need to swallow your pride and pay any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. 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 particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to reveal the dispute as over as opposed to ongoing.
  • If you hold a share in a the Management Company, you should make sure that you are holding the original share document. Arranging a re-issued share certificate can be a lengthy process and slows down many a Swavesey home move. Where a reissued share is needed, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (if applicable) for this at the earliest opportunity.
  • You may think that you are aware of the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be wise to verify this by asking your lawyers. A purchaser's lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the remaining number of years is below 80 years. It is therefore essential at an early stage that you identify whether the lease for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale.

    • Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on our sale of a £375000 flat in Swavesey in just under a week. The landlords agents has quoted £384 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and 3 years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge such fees for a leasehold conveyance in Swavesey?

    Swavesey conveyancing on leasehold apartments often requires the purchaser’s lawyer sending questions for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to address such questions the majority will be willing to assist. They may charge a reasonable administration fee for responding to enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average fee for the information that you are referring to is £350, in some cases it is above £800. The administration charge invoiced by the landlord must be sent together with a synopsis of rights and obligations in relation to administration charges, without which the invoice is not strictly payable. In reality one has no option but to pay whatever is requested of you if you want to exchange contracts with the buyer.

    Swavesey Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Queries before Purchasing

      How many of the leaseholders are in arrears for their service charge payments? You should be aware that where the lease has no more than 80 years it will have adverse implications on the marketability of the apartment. Check with your lender that they are willing to go ahead with the loan given the lease term. A short lease means that you will most likely need a lease extension sooner rather than later and it is worth discovering what this would cost. For most Swaveseylease extensions you would be be obliged to have been the owner of the premises for a couple of years before you are entitled to carry out a lease extension. Many Swavesey leasehold flats will have a service bill for the upkeep of the building set by the landlord. Where you acquire the flat you will have to pay this contribution, normally quarterly throughout the year. This may differ from a couple of hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for large purpose-built blocks. There will also be a rentcharge for you to pay annual, ordinarily this is not a exorbitant amount, say about £50-£100 but you need to enquire it because sometimes it could be surprisingly expensive.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Swavesey