Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Trimdon:

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

Trimdon leasehold conveyancing: Q and A’s

I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Trimdon. Before I get started I want to be sure as to the unexpired term of the lease.

If the lease is registered - and 99.9% are in Trimdon - then the leasehold title will always include the basic details 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 am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that appears to tick a lot of boxes, at a reasonable figure which is making it more attractive. I have since found out that the title is leasehold as opposed to freehold. I would have thought that there are particular concerns purchasing a house with a leasehold title in Trimdon. Conveyancing solicitors have are about to be instructed. Will my lawyers set out the implications of buying a leasehold house in Trimdon ?

Most houses in Trimdon are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area can assist with the conveyancing process. We note that you are buying in Trimdon in which case you should be shopping around for a Trimdon conveyancing practitioner and be sure that they are used to transacting on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the number of years remaining. Being a leaseholder you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions for example obtaining the freeholder’sconsent to conduct changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a contribution towards the maintenance of the estate where the property is part of an estate. Your solicitor should advise you fully on all the issues.

I've recently bought a leasehold flat in Trimdon. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before my ownership?

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. Strange as it may seem, 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).

I am a negotiator for a long established estate agent office in Trimdon where we see a number of flat sales put at risk due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received contradictory information from local Trimdon conveyancing firms. Could 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 been the owner 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. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser need not have to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed before, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.

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 Trimdon from the perspective of saving time on the sale process?

  • Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Trimdon can be bypassed if you appoint lawyers the minute your agents start advertising the property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation needed by the buyers solicitors.
  • Many landlords or managing agents in Trimdon levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the fee that they propose to charge. The management information can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The average time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most common reason for frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Trimdon.
  • If you have carried out any alterations to the property would they have required Landlord’s approval? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Trimdon leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or installing wooden flooring necessitate a licence issued by the Landlord consenting to such changes. Should you dont have the paperwork to hand do not communicate with the landlord without checking with your lawyer in advance.
  • If there is a history of conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is essential that these are resolved before the property is put on the market. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where there is an ongoing dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to 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 are still duty bound to disclose details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to present the dispute as historic as opposed to ongoing.
  • You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but it would be advisable verify this via your lawyers. A purchaser's conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to to exchange contracts if the lease term is less than 75 years. It is therefore essential at an early stage that you identify whether the lease term requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

    • I purchased a leasehold flat in Trimdon, conveyancing formalities finalised 4 years ago. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Equivalent flats in Trimdon with an extended lease are worth £204,000. The ground rent is £65 per annum. The lease runs out on 21st October 2098

    With 75 years remaining on your lease we estimate the premium for your lease extension to range between £11,400 and £13,200 plus legals.

    The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to advice on the actual costs without more detailed investigations. You should not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt additional concerns that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward placing reliance on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Trimdon