I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Whitchurch. Before I get started I would like to find out the remaining lease term.

If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and most are in Whitchurch - 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.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold house in Whitchurch. Conveyancing and Platform Home Loans Ltd mortgage organised. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1998. The conveyancing practitioner in Whitchurch who previously acted has long since retired.What should I do?

The first thing you should do is 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 Whitchurch conveyancing firm to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for a few pound. Rest assured that regardless, 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 reputable estate agent office in Whitchurch where we see a number of leasehold sales derailed as a result of short leases. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Whitchurch conveyancing solicitors. Can you confirm whether the vendor of a flat can start the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that the seller has been the owner 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. This means that the proposed purchaser can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed before, or simultaneously with completion of the sale.

Alternatively, it may be possible 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 purchaser.

What are your top tips when it comes to choosing a Whitchurch conveyancing firm to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

When appointing a solicitor for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Whitchurch conveyancing firm) it is most important that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We recommend that you talk with two or three firms including non Whitchurch 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 helpful:

• If they are not ALEP accredited then why not?
• What are the costs for lease extension conveyancing?

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Whitchurch from the point of view of expediting the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Whitchurch can be avoided if you instruct lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to collate the leasehold information which will be required by the purchasers’ lawyers.
• The majority landlords or managing agents in Whitchurch charge for supplying management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should find out the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack sought as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. The typical amount of time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most common cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in Whitchurch.
• Some Whitchurch leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, it would be prudent to place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. Any bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are financially capable of paying the annual service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their lawyers.
• If you have had conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is essential that these are resolved before the property is put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where a dispute is unresolved. You will have to accept that you will have to pay 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 purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to present the dispute as historic as opposed to unresolved.
• If you hold a share in a the Management Company, you should make sure that you hold the original share certificate. Arranging a new share certificate is often a lengthy formality and frustrates many a Whitchurch conveyancing deal. If a reissued share certificate is needed, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (if relevant) for this sooner rather than later.

Whitchurch Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Queries Prior to buying

On the whole the cost for major works tend not to be included within service charges, although there some managing agents in Whitchurch require leaseholders to contribute towards a sinking fund and this is used to offset against larger works. You should be aware that where the lease has no more than eighty years it will have adverse implications on the value of the apartment. It is worth checking with your bank that they are willing to go ahead with the loan given the lease term. Leases with fewer than 80 years remaining means that you will probably have to extend the lease sooner rather than later and you need to have some idea of what this would cost. Remember, in most cases you would need to own the residence for two years before you are entitled to carry out a lease extension.