Quality lawyers for Leasehold Conveyancing in Winterton

Get a Quote

While any conveyancing solicitor can theoretically handle your leasehold conveyancing in Winterton, your mortgage provider may not be willing to work with them if the firm are not on their list of approved solicitors for conveyancing

Top Five Questions relating to Winterton leasehold conveyancing

Back In 2007, I bought a leasehold house in Winterton. Conveyancing and Aldermore mortgage went though with no issue. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1994. The conveyancing practitioner in Winterton who acted for me is not around.Any advice?

First contact HMLR to make sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Winterton conveyancing firm to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for £3. Rest assured that regardless, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

I am looking at a two apartments in Winterton both have in the region of fifty years left on the leases. Will this present a problem?

A lease is a right to use the property for a period of time. As the lease gets shorter the saleability of the lease decreases and results in it becoming more expensive to acquire a lease extension. For this reason it is often a good idea to extend the lease term. More often than not it is difficult to sell a property with a short lease because mortgage lenders less inclined to grant a loan on such properties. Lease enfranchisement can be a protracted process. We recommend you seek professional assistance from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this area

Last month I purchased a leasehold property in Winterton. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to completion of my purchase?

In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. Strange as it may seem, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. It is an essential part of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to be sure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.

If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).

Can you offer any advice when it comes to finding a Winterton conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

When appointing a solicitor for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Winterton conveyancing practice) it is most important that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We suggested that you make enquires with several firms including non Winterton conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions could be of use:

  • What volume of lease extensions have they conducted in Winterton in the last 12 months?
  • What are the charges for lease extension conveyancing?

    • Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Winterton with the aim of expediting the sale process?

    • Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Winterton can be bypassed if you appoint lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to collate the leasehold information needed by the purchasers’ conveyancers.
    • In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s consent? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Winterton leases often stipulate that internal structural changes or laying down wooden flooring calls for a licence issued by the Landlord consenting to such changes. If you fail to have the consents in place you should not communicate with the landlord without contacting your lawyer first.
  • Some Winterton leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is able to meet the yearly 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 actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their solicitors.
  • If you have had any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are settled before the property is put on the market. The purchasers 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 settle 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 details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to present the dispute as historic as opposed to unsettled.
  • You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but it would be advisable double-check by asking your solicitors. A buyer’s conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the remaining number of years is under 80 years. In the circumstances it is essential at an as soon as possible that you identify whether the lease for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

    • I inherited a ground floor flat in Winterton, conveyancing formalities finalised in 2010. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Equivalent flats in Winterton with over 90 years remaining are worth £266,000. The ground rent is £50 levied per year. The lease runs out on 21st October 2103

    With 78 years unexpired the likely cost is going to span between £8,600 and £9,800 plus legals.

    The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure in the absence of comprehensive investigations. Do not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt additional concerns that need to be considered and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward placing reliance on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Winterton