Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in West Smithfield:

Get a Quote

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

Common questions relating to West Smithfield leasehold conveyancing

Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only Sixty One years remaining on my lease in West Smithfield. I now want to extend my lease but my freeholder is absent. What are my options?

If you meet the appropriate requirements, 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 enable the lease to be granted an extra 90 years by the magistrate. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have done all that could be expected to track down the freeholder. For most situations an enquiry agent would be helpful to conduct investigations and to produce a report to be accepted by the court as proof that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a property lawyer both on devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court covering West Smithfield.

I own a leasehold house in West Smithfield. Conveyancing and Britannia mortgage are in place. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the freehold. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1994. The conveyancing solicitor in West Smithfield who previously acted has long since retired.Any advice?

First make enquiries of the Land Registry to make sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. It is not necessary to instruct a West Smithfield conveyancing lawyer to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for a few pound. You should note that in any event, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

I am a negotiator for a busy estate agent office in West Smithfield where we have experienced a few flat sales jeopardised as a result of short leases. I have received inconsistent advice from local West Smithfield conveyancing solicitors. Could you shed some light as to whether the owner of a flat can instigate the lease extension process for the buyer?

Provided that 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. This means 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 has to be done before, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

An alternative approach is 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.

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in West Smithfield with the aim of speeding up the sale process?

  • A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in West Smithfield can be reduced if you instruct lawyers the minute you market your property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the purchasers’ lawyers.
  • The majority landlords or managing agents in West Smithfield levy fees for providing management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should find out the fee that they propose to charge. The management information sought on or before finding a buyer, thus reducing delays. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most usual cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in West Smithfield.
  • In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s permission? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? West Smithfield leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or addition of wooden flooring necessitate a licence from the Landlord consenting to such works. Should you dont have the approvals to hand do not communicate with the landlord without contacting your lawyer in advance.
  • If you have had any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are resolved prior to the flat being marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where there is a current dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to discharge any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose particulars of the dispute to the buyers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as historic as opposed to unsettled.
  • If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should make sure that you have the original share document. Obtaining a replacement share certificate can be a lengthy process and frustrates many a West Smithfield conveyancing transaction. Where a duplicate share is necessary, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (if relevant) for this at the earliest opportunity.

    • I have tried to negotiate informally with with my landlord to extend my lease without success. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal adjudicate on such matters? Can you recommend a West Smithfield conveyancing firm to help?

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

    An example of a Lease Extension case for a West Smithfield premises is Flat 89 Trinity Court Grays Inn Road in February 2013. the Tribunal found that the premium to be paid by the tenant on the grant of a new lease, in accordance with section 56 and Schedule 13 to the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 should be £36,229. This case related to 1 flat. The the unexpired term as at the valuation date was 66.8 years.

    What makes a West Smithfield lease unacceptable for security purposes?

    Leasehold conveyancing in West Smithfield is not unique. All leases are unique and legal mistakes in the legal wording can result in certain provisions are not included. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

    • A provision to repair to or maintain parts of the property
    • A duty to insure the building
    • Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
    • Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

    You could have difficulties when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Nationwide Building Society, Leeds Building Society, and Britannia all have express conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to provide security, obliging the buyer to pull out.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in West Smithfield