Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Swinton:

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While any conveyancing solicitor can theoretically deal with your leasehold conveyancing in Swinton, your mortgage provider may not be willing to work with them if the firm are not on their list of approved solicitors for conveyancing

Recently asked questions relating to Swinton leasehold conveyancing

I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Swinton. Before diving in I require certainty as to the number of years remaining on the lease.

Assuming the lease is registered - and 99.9% are in Swinton - 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 appointed agents to market my basement apartment in Swinton.Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon but I have just had a half-yearly maintenance charge invoice – Do I pay up?

It best that you 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 am a negotiator for a long established estate agency in Swinton where we have witnessed a number of leasehold sales derailed due to short leases. I have been given contradictory information from local Swinton conveyancing solicitors. Can you shed some light as to whether the seller of a flat can commence 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 commence 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 for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed before, or simultaneously with completion of the sale.

An alternative approach is 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 offer any advice when it comes to choosing a Swinton conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a property lawyer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Swinton conveyancing practice) it is most important 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 Swinton conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions might be of use:

  • How experienced is the practice with lease extension legislation?
  • What are the legal fees for lease extension conveyancing?

    • Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Swinton with the aim of speeding up the sale process?

    • Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Swinton can be bypassed where you get in touch lawyers as soon as you market your property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information needed by the buyers conveyancers.
    • A minority of Swinton leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. The 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 purchasers or their solicitors.
  • If you have had conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are settled prior to the flat being put on the market. The buyers and their solicitors will be concerned about purchasing a property where there is an ongoing dispute. You may need to swallow your pride and discharge any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal details of the dispute to the buyers, 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 ensure that you have the original share certificate. Arranging a re-issued share certificate is often a time consuming process and delays many a Swinton conveyancing transaction. Where a reissued share certificate is needed, you should approach the company officers 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 wise to verify this via your lawyers. A buyer’s conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to where the lease term is less than 75 years. It is therefore important at an as soon as possible that you identify whether the lease term requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale.

    • Leasehold Conveyancing in Swinton - Sample of Queries Prior to buying

      What is the annual service fee and ground rent? Does the lease include onerous restrictions? You will want to discover as much as you can regarding the managing agents as they can either make living at the property much easier or problematic. As the owner of a leasehold property you will be at the mercy of the managing agents both financially and when it comes to day to day issues such as the upkeep of the common parts. Ask prospective neighbours if they are happy with their management. Finally, be sure you know the dates that the service charges are due to the managing agents and precisely what you get for your money.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Swinton