Experts for Leasehold Conveyancing in Wolverton

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Leasehold conveyancing in Wolverton is more complex than freehold. Your home move will be smoother where you choose a lawyer with a wealth of experience of leasehold conveyancing in Wolverton and across next step up in loc. The lawyers we recommend have been approved by your lender so use our search tool to check.

Frequently asked questions relating to Wolverton leasehold conveyancing

Looking forward to exchange soon on a studio apartment in Wolverton. Conveyancing lawyers have said that they will have a report out to me on Monday. What should I be looking out for?

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

  • Do you need to have carpet in the flat or are you allowed wood flooring?
  • Are pets allowed in the flat?
  • Does the lease prevent you from renting out the flat, or having a home office for business
  • An explanation as to the provision in the lease to pay service charges - with regard to both the building, and the more general rights a leaseholder has
  • You should have a good understanding of the insurance provisions
  • Repair and maintenance of the flat
  • 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 For a comprehensive list of information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Wolverton please ask your lawyer in advance of your conveyancing in Wolverton

    • I have just started marketing my ground floor flat in Wolverton.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just had a yearly service charge invoice – what should I do?

    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.

    Last month I purchased a leasehold flat in Wolverton. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

    Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. However, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element 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).

    I work for a busy estate agent office in Wolverton where we see a number of leasehold sales put at risk as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given conflicting advice from local Wolverton conveyancing solicitors. Could you confirm whether the vendor of a flat can commence 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 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 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.

    Alternatively, it may be possible to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord 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.

    Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Wolverton with the intention of speeding up the sale process?

    • Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Wolverton can be avoided if you get in touch lawyers the minute your agents start marketing the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers lawyers.
    • In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s approval? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Wolverton leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or addition of wooden flooring calls for a licence from the Landlord approving such works. Where you dont have the approvals to hand you should not communicate with the landlord without checking with your conveyancer before hand.
  • A minority of Wolverton leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand 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 service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their solicitors.
  • If you have had conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are settled prior to the flat being put on the market. The buyers and their solicitors will be concerned about purchasing a flat where a dispute is unresolved. You may need to swallow your pride and discharge any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal details of the dispute to the buyers, but it is better to present the dispute as historic as opposed to unresolved.
  • If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should make sure that you have the original share document. Arranging a replacement share certificate is often a time consuming formality and delays many a Wolverton home move. Where a new share is needed, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (if applicable) for this at the earliest opportunity.

    • Leasehold Conveyancing in Wolverton - A selection of Queries Prior to buying

      Its a good idea to discover as much as possible regarding the managing agents as they will either make your life much simpler or much more difficult. As the proprietor of a leasehold property you will be at the mercy of the managing agents from a financial perspective and when it comes to practical matters such as the tidiness of the communal areas. Don't be shy to ask other people whether they are happy with their service. On a final note, investigate as to the dates that you are obliged pay the maintenance charge to the relevant party and precisely how they are spending that money. If a Wolverton lease has fewer than eighty years it will have adverse implications on the value of the property. Check with your lender that they are willing to lend given the lease term. A short lease means that you will almost definitely need a lease extension at some point and it is worth discovering what this will be. Remember, in most cases you would be required to have been the owner of the premises for a couple of years in order to be entitled to exercise a lease extension. How many years remain on the lease?

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Wolverton