Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Walton:

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

Top Five Questions relating to Walton leasehold conveyancing

I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Walton. Before I get started I want to be sure as to the remaining lease term.

If the lease is registered - and almost all are in Walton - then the leasehold title will always include the short particulars 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.

Jane (my partner) and I may need to sub-let our Walton ground floor flat temporarily due to taking a sabbatical. We used a Walton conveyancing practice in 2004 but they have closed and we did not think at the time get any advice as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?

Your lease governs the relationship between the freeholder and you the flat owner; in particular, it will say if subletting is prohibited, or permitted but only subject to certain caveats. The rule is that if the lease contains no specific ban or restriction, subletting is permitted. Most leases in Walton do not prevent subletting altogether – such a provision would adversely affect the market value the flat. Instead, there is usually a basic requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly supplying a duplicate of the tenancy agreement.

I only have 68 years left on my flat in Walton. I now want to extend my lease but my freeholder is missing. What options are available to me?

If you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply 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 magistrate. However, you will be required to prove that you or your lawyers have used your best endeavours to locate the lessor. In some cases a specialist may be useful to carry out a search and to produce an expert document which can be used as proof that the landlord is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a conveyancer both on investigating the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court overseeing Walton.

I am hoping to complete next month on a leasehold property in Walton. Conveyancing solicitors inform me that they are sending me a report next week. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Walton should include some of the following:

  • The unexpired lease term You should be advised as what happens when the lease expires, and aware of the importance of the 80 year mark
  • Defining your rights in respect of common areas in the building.For instance, does the lease grant a right of way over a path or hallways?
  • Repair and maintenance of the flat
  • 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.
  • The landlord’s obligations to repair and maintain the building. It is important that you know who is responsible for the repair and maintenance of every part of the building
  • Responsibility for repairing the window frames
  • What options are open to you if a neighbour breach a clause of their lease? For details of the information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Walton please ask your solicitor in ahead of your conveyancing in Walton

    • I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a two flats in Walton both have in the region of 50 years unexpired on the leases. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

    There are plenty of short leases in Walton. The lease is a right to use the premises for a period of time. As a lease shortens the marketability of the lease decreases and it becomes more costly to acquire a lease extension. This is why it is often a good idea 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 enfranchisement can be a difficult process. We advise that you seek professional help from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this field

    I have tried to negotiate informally with with my landlord for a lease extension without getting anywhere. Can I apply to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal? Can you recommend a Walton conveyancing firm to represent me?

    Most definitely. We can put you in touch with a Walton conveyancing firm who can help.

    An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Walton property is 147 Redford Close in June 2012. The Tribunal determined the lease extension premium to be at £4,200 This case was in relation to 1 flat. The the unexpired term as at the valuation date was 82.93 years.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Walton