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Top Five Questions relating to Tredegar leasehold conveyancing

I only have Seventy years unexpired on my lease in Tredegar. I am keen to extend my lease but my freeholder is absent. What are my options?

On the basis that you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be extended by the Court. You will be obliged to prove that you have done all that could be expected to track down the lessor. In some cases an enquiry agent should be helpful to conduct investigations and to produce an expert document which can be used as proof that the freeholder can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a solicitor in relation to investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Tredegar.

I today plan to offer on a house that seems to meet my requirements, at a great price which is making it more attractive. I have just discovered that it's a leasehold as opposed to freehold. I am assuming that there are particular concerns buying a house with a leasehold title in Tredegar. Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed. Will my lawyers set out the implications of buying a leasehold house in Tredegar ?

The majority of houses in Tredegar are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor used to dealing with such properties who can assist with the conveyancing process. it is apparent that you are buying in Tredegar so you should seriously consider looking for a Tredegar conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they have experience in transacting on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the number of years remaining. As a leaseholder you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want to the property. The lease will likely included provisions for example obtaining the freeholder’spermission to carry out changes to the property. You may also be required to pay a contribution towards the upkeep of the estate where the house is located on an estate. Your conveyancer should report to you on the legal implications.

I am looking at a two apartments in Tredegar which have in the region of fifty years remaining on the leases. should I be concerned?

There is no doubt about it. A leasehold flat in Tredegar is a deteriorating asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The nearer the lease gets to its expiry date, the more it reduces the value of the premises. The majority of buyers and lenders, leases with less than 75 years become less and less marketable. On a more positive note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the property for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of property with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Tredegar conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. More often than not it is possible to negotiate informally with the freeholder to extend the lease You may find he or she is happy to negotiate informally and willing to consider your offer straight off, without having to involve anyone else. This will save you time and money and it could help you reach a lower price on the lease. You need to ensure that the agreed terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.

I've recently bought a leasehold property in Tredegar. 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 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 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).

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Tredegar from the point of view of saving time on the sale process?

  • Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Tredegar can be reduced where you get in touch lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to collate the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers conveyancers.
  • The majority freeholders or Management Companies in Tredegar charge for supplying management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should find out the actual amount of the charges. The management information sought on or before finding a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The typical amount of time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most common reason for frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Tredegar.
  • If you have carried out any alterations to the premises would they have required Landlord’s approval? Have you, for example laid down wooden flooring? Tredegar leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or addition of wooden flooring calls for a licence from the Landlord acquiescing to such alterations. Where you dont have the consents to hand you should not contact the landlord without contacting your conveyancer first.
  • A minority of Tredegar leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain 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 actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their solicitors.
  • If you have the benefit of shareholding in the freehold, you should make sure that you are holding the original share document. Obtaining a re-issued share certificate can be a time consuming formality and delays many a Tredegar home move. If a duplicate share certificate is required, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (where relevant) for this sooner rather than later.

    • Leasehold Conveyancing in Tredegar - A selection of Queries Prior to buying

      The answer will be important as a) areas may result in problems in the block as the common areas may begin to deteriorate if services remain unpaid b) if the tenants have an issue with the running of the building you will want to have all the details Are there any major works in the near future that could increase the service charges? The prefered form of lease arrangement is a share of the freehold. In this scenario the leaseholders enjoy control and even though a managing agent is usually retained if the building is bigger than a house conversion, the managing agent is directed by the tenants.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Tredegar