I've found a house that appears to meet my requirements, at a reasonable figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have subsequently found out that it's a leasehold as opposed to freehold. I am assuming that there are issues buying a house with a leasehold title in Torrington. Conveyancing advisers have not yet been instructed. Will my lawyers set out the risks of buying a leasehold house in Torrington ?

The majority of houses in Torrington are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area can help the conveyancing process. We note that you are buying in Torrington so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Torrington conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they are used to transacting on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. As a leaseholder you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease comes with conditions such as obtaining the landlord’spermission to carry out alterations. It may be necessary to pay a service charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the house is located on an estate. Your conveyancer should advise you fully on all the issues.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold house in Torrington. Conveyancing and Barclays mortgage went though with no issue. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the freehold. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1992. The conveyancing practitioner in Torrington who acted for me is not around.Any advice?

First contact HMLR to be sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. You do not need to instruct a Torrington conveyancing solicitor to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for £3. You should note that in any event, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a couple of maisonettes in Torrington both have in the region of fifty years unexpired on the leases. Will this present a problem?

There are plenty of short leases in Torrington. The lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the premises for a period of time. As a lease gets shorter the saleability of the lease reduces and results in it becoming more costly to acquire a lease extension. For this reason it is often a good idea to increase the term of the lease. Sometimes it is difficult to sell a property with a short lease because mortgage companies less inclined to grant a loan on such properties. Lease enfranchisement can be a difficult process. We recommend you get professional assistance from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this area

I am a negotiator for a long established estate agent office in Torrington where we see a number of flat sales derailed due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received contradictory information from local Torrington conveyancing solicitors. Please can you confirm whether the vendor of a flat can initiate the lease extension process 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 for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done prior to, or simultaneously with completion of the sale.

Alternatively, it may be possible 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 provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Torrington with the intention of expediting the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Torrington can be reduced where you appoint lawyers as soon as you market your property and request that they start to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the purchasers’ conveyancers.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s consent? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Most leases in Torrington state that internal structural alterations or laying down wooden flooring calls for a licence issued by the Landlord acquiescing to such changes. Where you fail to have the consents to hand do not communicate with the landlord without checking with your solicitor in advance.
• Some Torrington leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, it would be prudent to place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers put in hand financial (bank) and professional references. Any bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are able to meet the yearly 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 you have had any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved before the property is put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be nervous about purchasing a flat where there is an ongoing dispute. You may have to bite the bullet and pay any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. 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 particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to present the dispute as historic rather than unresolved.
• If you have the benefit of shareholding in the Management Company, you should make sure that you are holding the original share document. Obtaining a replacement share certificate is often a time consuming process and slows down many a Torrington home move. If a new share certificate is required, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (where relevant) for this as soon as possible.

Torrington Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - A selection of Questions you should ask before buying

How much is the ground rent and service charge? How is the lease structured?