West Wittering leasehold conveyancing: Q and A’s
I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in West Wittering. Before diving in I would like to find out the remaining lease term.
Assuming the lease is registered - and 99.9% are in West Wittering - 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 West Wittering. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask her. Is permission from the freeholder required?
Even though your previous West Wittering conveyancing lawyer is not around you can check your lease to check if you are permitted to let out the premises. The accepted inference is that if the lease is silent, subletting is allowed. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you must seek consent from your landlord or other appropriate person in advance of subletting. This means that you cannot sublet without prior consent. The consent should not be unreasonably withheld. If your lease does not allow you to sublet you will need to ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.
There are only 72 years unexpired on my lease in West Wittering. I need to get lease extension but my landlord is can not be found. 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 granted an extra 90 years by the Court. You will be obliged to prove that you have made all reasonable attempts to locate the landlord. On the whole an enquiry agent would be helpful to try and locate and to produce an expert document to be used as evidence that the freeholder can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a property lawyer both on investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court covering West Wittering.
Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my ground floor apartment in West Wittering.Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon but I have just had a quarterly maintenance charge demand – Do I pay up?
Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should discharge the service charge 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.
When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in West Wittering what are the most frequent lease problems?
There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in West Wittering. Most leases are unique and legal mistakes in the legal wording can result in certain clauses are wrong. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:
- A provision to repair to or maintain elements of the property
- A duty to insure the building
- A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
- Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage
A defective lease will likely cause problems when trying to sell a property as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Accord Mortgages Ltd, Bank of Scotland, and Bank of Ireland all have very detailed 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 pull out.
I bought a 1st floor flat in West Wittering, conveyancing was carried out 10 years ago. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Equivalent properties in West Wittering with a long lease are worth £234,000. The ground rent is £65 levied per year. The lease expires on 21st October 2092
With 67 years left to run we estimate the price of your lease extension to be between £12,400 and £14,200 as well as professional fees.
The figure above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs without more detailed investigations. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt other concerns that need to be considered and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action based on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.
Other Topics