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

If the lease is registered - and almost all are in Wallasey - 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 wish to let out my leasehold flat in Wallasey. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask her. Do I need to ask my freeholder for their consent?

The lease dictates relations between the landlord and you the flat owner; in particular, it will say if subletting is prohibited, or permitted but only subject to certain caveats. The accepted inference is that if the lease contains no expres ban or restriction, subletting is allowed. The majority of leases in Wallasey do not prevent strict prohibition on subletting – such a provision would undoubtedly devalue the property. In most cases there is a basic requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly sending a duplicate of the sublease.

Last month I purchased a leasehold house in Wallasey. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to completion of my purchase?

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. 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).

I work for a busy estate agent office in Wallasey where we have witnessed a few flat sales derailed as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given contradictory information from local Wallasey conveyancing solicitors. Please can you confirm whether the owner of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities 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 commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the buyer need not have 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 disposal of the property.

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 purchaser.

What advice can you give us when it comes to appointing a Wallasey conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a property lawyer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Wallasey conveyancing firm) it is essential that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We advise that you talk with several firms including non Wallasey conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions could be useful:

• If the firm is not ALEP accredited then what is the reason?

Leasehold Conveyancing in Wallasey - A selection of Queries before Purchasing

The best form of lease arrangement is a share of the freehold. In this situation the tenants benefit from being in charge if their destiny and notwithstanding that a managing agent is usually employed if the building is larger than a house conversion, the managing agent retained by the leaseholders. Plenty Wallasey leasehold properties will have a service bill for the upkeep of the building levied on behalf of the freeholder. Where you buy the flat you will have to meet this charge, normally in instalments during the year. This can be anything from two or three hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for blocks with lifts and large common areas. In all probability there will be a ground rent for you to pay annual, this is usually not a significant figure, say approximately £50-£100 but you need to enquire as sometimes it can be many hundreds of pounds. Is there a share of the freehold?

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Wallasey