Guaranteed fixed fees for Leasehold Conveyancing in Wickford

Get a Quote

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

Wickford leasehold conveyancing Example Support Desk Enquiries

I want to let out my leasehold apartment in Wickford. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask her. Is permission from the freeholder required?

The lease governs relations between the freeholder and you the flat owner; specifically, it will set out if subletting is not allowed, or permitted but only subject to certain conditions. The rule is that if the lease contains no expres ban or restriction, subletting is allowed. Most leases in Wickford do not prevent an absolute prevention of subletting – such a clause would undoubtedly devalue the property. In most cases there is a basic requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly supplying a copy of the sublease.

Expecting to sign contracts shortly on a leasehold property in Wickford. Conveyancing lawyers have said that they report fully on Monday. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Wickford should include some of the following:

  • Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, freeholder
  • Defining your legal entitlements in respect of the communal areas in the block.For instance, does the lease permit a right of way over an accessway or staircase?
  • Ground rent - how much and when you need to pay, and also know whether this is subject to change
  • Changes to the flat (alterations and additions)
  • Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your property and do you know what it means in practice?
  • 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
  • What the implications are if you breach a clause of your lease? For a comprehensive list of information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Wickford please enquire of your lawyer in advance of your conveyancing in Wickford

    • I have just started marketing my garden apartment in Wickford.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just had a yearly maintenance charge demand – what should I do?

    The sensible thing to do is clear 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 until 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. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

    I work for a long established estate agent office in Wickford where we have witnessed a number of leasehold sales derailed due to short leases. I have received contradictory information from local Wickford conveyancing solicitors. Could you shed some light as to whether the owner of a flat can instigate the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

    As long as 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 sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or simultaneously with completion of the sale.

    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 purchaser.

    If all goes to plan we aim to complete the sale of our £225000 garden flat in Wickford on Monday in a week. The managing agents has quoted £300 for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and previous years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge an administration fee for a leasehold conveyance in Wickford?

    Wickford conveyancing on leasehold apartments more often than not necessitates the purchaser’s solicitor sending enquiries for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to answer these enquiries the majority will be willing to do so. They are at liberty invoice a reasonable administration fee for answering questions or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average fee for the information that you are referring to is £350, in some transactions it exceeds £800. The management information fee levied by the landlord must be sent together with a summary of entitlements and obligations in relation to administration charges, without which the invoice is not strictly payable. Reality however dictates that you have no option but to pay whatever is demanded should you wish to exchange contracts with the buyer.

    Leasehold Conveyancing in Wickford - Sample of Queries before Purchasing

      Who takes charge for maintaining and repairing the block? Most Wickford leasehold properties will incur a service bill for the upkeep of the block levied by the management company. If you purchase the flat you will have to meet this liability, usually in instalments throughout the year. This may be anything from several hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for bigger purpose-built buildings. In all likelihood there will be a rentcharge to be met yearly, this is usually not a significant amount, say about £25-£75 but you need to check it because occasionally it can be many hundreds of pounds. Make sure you find out if the the lease includes any onerous restrictions in the lease. By way of example some leases prohibit pets being allowed in in a block in Wickford. If you love the propertyin Wickford however your cat is not allowed to live with you then you will be faced difficult compromise.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Wickford