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

Assuming the lease is registered - and 99.9% are in Whimple - 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.

Jane (my partner) and I may need to sub-let our Whimple basement flat for a while due to a career opportunity. We instructed a Whimple conveyancing firm in 2004 but they have since shut and we did not think at the time seek any guidance as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?

A lease governs relations between the freeholder and you the flat owner; specifically, it will indicate 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 allowed. Most leases in Whimple do not contain subletting altogether – such a clause would adversely affect the market value the property. Instead, there is usually a basic requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly supplying a duplicate of the sublease.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold house in Whimple. Conveyancing and Bank of Scotland mortgage organised. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1997. The conveyancing solicitor in Whimple who acted for me is not around.Do I pay?

The first thing you should do is make enquiries of HMLR to make sure that this person is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. There is no need to incur the fees of a Whimple conveyancing solicitor to do this as it can be done on-line for less than a fiver. You should note that in any event, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I work for a long established estate agent office in Whimple where we have witnessed a few flat sales derailed due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given conflicting advice from local Whimple conveyancing firms. 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 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 before, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

An alternative approach is 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.

What advice can you give us when it comes to finding a Whimple conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

When appointing a solicitor for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Whimple conveyancing practice) it is imperative that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We advise that you talk with two or three firms including non Whimple conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions might be useful:

• Can they put you in touch with client in Whimple who can give a testimonial?

Leasehold Conveyancing in Whimple - A selection of Queries Prior to buying

Does this lease have more than 85 years remaining? Plenty Whimple leasehold properties will be liable to pay a service charge for maintenance of the block set on behalf of the landlord. If you purchase the property you will have to pay this contribution, normally in instalments throughout the year. This may differ from several hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for large purpose-built buildings. There will also be a ground rent to be met annual, normally this is not a significant figure, say about £50-£100 but you should to enquire it because sometimes it could be prohibitively expensive. You will want to find out as much as possible concerning the managing agents as they will either make living at the property much easier or much more difficult. Being a leasehold owner you will be in the clutches of the managing agents from a financial perspective and when it comes to day to day issues like the cleanliness of the common parts. Enquire of other people whether they are happy with them. In conclusion, investigate as to the dates that the maintenance charges are due to the managing agents and specifically how they are spending that money.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Whimple