Top Five Questions relating to Tyldesley leasehold conveyancing
Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Tyldesley. Before I set the wheels in motion I require certainty as to the number of years remaining on the lease.
Assuming the lease is registered - and 99.9% are in Tyldesley - 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.
Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only 72 years remaining on my flat in Tyldesley. I need to get lease extension but my landlord is can not be found. What should I do?
If 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 an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be lengthened by the Court. You will be obliged to prove that you or your lawyers have done all that could be expected to track down the landlord. In some cases an enquiry agent should be helpful to carry out a search and to produce an expert document to be used as proof that the freeholder can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a conveyancer both on proving the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Tyldesley.
Last month I purchased a leasehold house in Tyldesley. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before my ownership?
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. A critical element 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 work for a busy estate agency in Tyldesley where we have experienced a few flat sales derailed due to short leases. I have received inconsistent advice from local Tyldesley conveyancing firms. Please can you clarify whether the seller of a flat can commence the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?
As long as the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to start 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 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 buyer.
What advice can you give us when it comes to appointing a Tyldesley conveyancing firm to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?
When appointing a property lawyer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Tyldesley conveyancing practice) it is essential that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We recommend that you talk with two or three firms including non Tyldesley conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be of use:
- How experienced is the firm with lease extension legislation?
I acquired a 1st floor flat in Tyldesley, conveyancing having been completed half a dozen years ago. Can you shed any light on how much the price could be for a 90 year extension to my lease? Corresponding flats in Tyldesley with an extended lease are worth £170,000. The ground rent is £55 levied per year. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2078
You have 55 years left to run we estimate the premium for your lease extension to be between £28,500 and £33,000 as well as professional fees.
The figure above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to advice on a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed due diligence. Do not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other 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 without first getting professional advice.
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