Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Tilehurst:

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When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Tilehurst, you will need to chose a conveyancing practitioner with leasehold experience. Whether your lender is to be Santander, Yorkshire Building Society or NatWest be sure to choose a lawyer on their panel. Feel free to use our search tool

Frequently asked questions relating to Tilehurst leasehold conveyancing

Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Tilehurst. Before diving in I would like to find out the remaining lease term.

If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and most are in Tilehurst - 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've recently bought a leasehold property in Tilehurst. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before my ownership?

In a situation 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 employed by a busy estate agent office in Tilehurst where we see a number of leasehold sales derailed due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received contradictory information from local Tilehurst conveyancing solicitors. Can you clarify whether the seller of a flat can initiate the lease extension process 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. 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 prior to, or simultaneously with 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 advice for leasehold conveyancing in Tilehurst from the point of view of expediting the sale process?

  • A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Tilehurst can be reduced if you get in touch lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers solicitors.
  • Many freeholders or Management Companies in Tilehurst levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the actual amount of the charges. The management pack sought as soon as you have a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The average time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most frequent reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Tilehurst.
  • In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s permission? Have you, for example laid down wooden flooring? Most leases in Tilehurst state that internal structural changes or installing wooden flooring calls for a licence from the Landlord approving such works. If you fail to have the paperwork in place you should not contact the landlord without checking with your lawyer in the first instance.
  • A minority of Tilehurst leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, it would be prudent to notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is financially capable of paying 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 lawyers.
  • If there is a history of any disputes with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are settled before the property is marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be warry about purchasing a flat where there is a current dispute. You may have to bite the bullet and pay any arrears of service charge or settle 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 are still duty bound to disclose details of the dispute to the buyers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as over as opposed to unresolved.

    • Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on the sale of our £250000 apartment in Tilehurst in six days. The management company has quoted £324 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and 3 years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in Tilehurst?

    Tilehurst conveyancing on leasehold flats more often than not necessitates the purchaser’s conveyancer submitting enquiries for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to respond to these enquiries the majority will be willing to do so. They are entitled charge a reasonable administration fee for answering enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average fee for the paperwork that you are referring to is £350, in some situations it exceeds £800. The administration charge demanded by the landlord must be sent together with a summary of rights and obligations in respect of administration fees, otherwise the charge is technically not due. Reality however dictates that you have no option but to pay whatever is demanded if you want to exchange contracts with the buyer.

    Leasehold Conveyancing in Tilehurst - Sample of Questions you should consider Prior to Purchasing

      Best to be warned if redecorating or some other major work is anticipated to be shared amongst the tenants and will materially impact the level of the maintenance fees or require a specific payment. How is the lease structured? What is the service charge and ground rent on the apartment?

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Tilehurst