I have just started marketing my ground floor flat in Urmston.Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon but I have just received a half-yearly maintenance charge demand – Do I pay up?

It best that you clear the invoice as normal because all ground rent and service charges will be apportioned on completion, so you will be reimbursed by the buyer for the period running from after the completion date to the next payment date. Most management companies will not acknowledge the buyer unless the service charges have been paid and are up to date so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold house in Urmston. Conveyancing and Nationwide Building Society mortgage went though with no issue. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1997. The conveyancing practitioner in Urmston who previously acted has long since retired.Any advice?

First make enquiries of the Land Registry to make sure that this person is in fact the new freeholder. It is not necessary to instruct a Urmston conveyancing solicitor to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for £3. You should note that regardless, even if this is the legitimate landlord, 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 apartments in Urmston both have approximately 50 years unexpired on the lease term. Do I need to be concerned?

A lease is a right to use the property for a prescribed time frame. As the lease shortens the value of the lease deteriorate and results in it becoming more expensive to extend the lease. For this reason it is advisable to extend the lease term. Sometimes it is difficult to sell a property with a short lease because mortgage lenders may be reluctant to lend money on properties of this type. Lease extension can be a difficult process. We recommend you seek professional assistance from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this area

I am employed by a reputable estate agency in Urmston where we see a number of flat sales derailed as a result of short leases. I have received conflicting advice from local Urmston conveyancing solicitors. Could you shed some light as to whether the seller of a flat can initiate the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

As long as 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. This means that the proposed purchaser can avoid having to wait 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 at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

An alternative approach is 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.

If all goes to plan we aim to complete the sale of our £150000 flat in Urmston in 10 days. The managing agents has quoted £348 for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and previous years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in Urmston?

For the majority of leasehold sales in Urmston conveyancing will involve, queries regarding the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :

• Addressing conveyancing due diligence questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Urmston
• Copies of the building insurance and schedule
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your conveyancer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Urmston leasehold property is £350. For Urmston conveyancing transactions it is customary for the seller to pay for these costs. The landlord or their agents are under no legal obligation to answer such questions most will be willing to do so - albeit often at exorbitant prices where the fees bear little relation to the work involved. Unfortunately there is no law that requires fixed charges for administrative tasks. Neither is there any legal time frame by which they are obliged to supply the information.

Urmston Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Questions you should consider Prior to Purchasing

You will want to find out as much as possible regarding the company managing the block as they can either make life much easier or uncomfortable. Being a leasehold owner you will be in the clutches of the managing agents both financially and when it comes to every day issues such as the upkeep of the communal areas. Ask other tenants if they are happy with their service. Finally, investigate as to the dates that the service charges are due to the managing agents and precisely what you get for your money. How much is the ground rent and service charge? The answer will be useful as a) areas can result in problems in the block as the communal areas may start to deteriorate if services remain unpaid b) if the leaseholders have a dispute with the running of the building you will want to have all the details

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Urmston