Looking forward to sign contracts shortly on a garden flat in Victoria Docks. Conveyancing lawyers assured me that they report fully next week. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Victoria Docks should include some of the following:

• Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, landlord
• The physical extent of the demise. This will be the property itself but may incorporate a loft or cellar if applicable.
• You should have a good understanding of the insurance provisions
• The landlord’s rights to access the flat you be made aware that your landlord has rights of access and I know how much notice s/he must provide.
• Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your premises and do you know what it means in practice?
• What you can do if a neighbour is in violation of a provision in their lease?

I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that seems to tick a lot of boxes, at a great figure which is making it more attractive. I have just found out that the title is leasehold as opposed to freehold. I would have thought that there are issues buying a leasehold house in Victoria Docks. Conveyancing lawyers have are soon to be instructed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Victoria Docks are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can assist with the conveyancing process. it is apparent that you are purchasing in Victoria Docks so you should seriously consider looking for a Victoria Docks conveyancing practitioner and check that they have experience in transacting on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the unexpired lease term. Being a lessee you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want to the property. The lease will likely included provisions for example obtaining the landlord’spermission to carry out alterations. It may be necessary to pay a service charge towards the upkeep of the estate where the property is part of an estate. Your lawyer should advise you fully on all the issues.

I am employed by a long established estate agency in Victoria Docks where we have experienced a number of flat sales jeopardised as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given contradictory information from local Victoria Docks conveyancing solicitors. Please can you clarify whether the seller of a flat can instigate the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

As long as 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. The benefit of this is 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 needs to be completed prior to, or at the same time as completion of the sale.

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 top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Victoria Docks from the point of view of expediting the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Victoria Docks 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 documentation which will be required by the purchasers’ lawyers.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s permission? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Victoria Docks leases often stipulate that internal structural changes or addition of wooden flooring necessitate a licence from the Landlord approving such changes. Should you fail to have the approvals to hand do not communicate with the landlord without contacting your lawyer in the first instance.
• Some Victoria Docks leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. The bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is able to meet 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 buyers or their lawyers.
• If you are supposed to have a share in the Management Company, you should make sure that you are holding the original share certificate. Arranging a re-issued share certificate is often a lengthy process and delays many a Victoria Docks home move. If a reissued share certificate is needed, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (where applicable) for this as soon as possible.
• You may think that you are aware of the number of years remaining on your lease but you should double-check via your solicitors. A buyer’s conveyancer will be unlikely to recommend their client to to exchange contracts if the lease term is under 75 years. In the circumstances it is essential at an as soon as possible that you consider whether the lease term for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

We have reached the end of our tether in seeking a lease extension in Victoria Docks. Can this matter be resolved via the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal?

in cases where there is a missing landlord or where there is dispute about the premium for a lease extension, under the relevant legislation you can apply to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal to judgment on the price payable.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Victoria Docks residence is 46 Credon Road in January 2014. On 11 September 2013 Deputy District Judge Price sitting at the Bow County Court made a vesting order that the freeholder surrender his lease and be granted a new lease of the Premises on such terms as may be determined by the First Tier Tribunal (Property Chamber).The appropriate sum as concluded by the Tribunal was £7225 This case related to 1 flat. The the unexpired residue of the current lease was 69.77 years.

In relation to leasehold conveyancing in Victoria Docks what are the most frequent lease defects?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Victoria Docks. All leases are unique and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain sections are wrong. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the premises
• A duty to insure the building
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

You may encounter a problem when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. National Westminster Bank, Norwich and Peterborough Building Society, and Britannia all have express conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is defective they may refuse to grant the mortgage, obliging the purchaser to withdraw.

I am the registered owner of a garden flat in Victoria Docks, conveyancing was carried out 8 years ago. How much will my lease extension cost? Corresponding flats in Victoria Docks with an extended lease are worth £268,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £55 per annum. The lease expires on 21st October 2101

With just 75 years left to run we estimate the price of your lease extension to be between £13,300 and £15,400 plus legals.

The figure above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed due diligence. You should not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt other issues that need to be taken into account and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not take any other action placing reliance on this information without first getting professional advice.