I own a leasehold house in Wolverton. Conveyancing and Britannia 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 1996. The conveyancing solicitor in Wolverton who acted for me is not around.Do I pay?

First make enquiries of the Land Registry to make sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is in fact the new freeholder. You do not need to instruct a Wolverton conveyancing firm to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for £3. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I am looking at a couple of flats in Wolverton which have approximately fifty years left on the leases. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

There are no two ways about it. A leasehold apartment in Wolverton is a deteriorating asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The closer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it reduces the value of the property. The majority of buyers and mortgage companies, leases with under eighty years become less and less attractive. On a more positive note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the property for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of premises with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Wolverton conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. A more straightforward and quicker method of extending would be to contact your landlord directly and sound him out on the prospect of extending the lease They may agree to a smaller lump sum and an increase in the ground rent, but to shorter extension terms in return. You need to ensure that the agreed terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Wolverton from the point of view of speeding up the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Wolverton can be reduced if you instruct lawyers the minute your agents start marketing the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers conveyancers.
• Many freeholders or Management Companies in Wolverton charge for supplying management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the actual amount of the charges. The management pack can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The average time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most frequent cause of frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Wolverton.
• Some Wolverton leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are 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 purchasers or their solicitors.
• If you have had any disputes with your landlord 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 flat where there is an ongoing dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to discharge any arrears of service charge or resolve 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 are still duty bound to disclose particulars of the dispute to the buyers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as historic rather than unresolved.
• If you are supposed to have a share in the Management Company, you should ensure that you hold the original share certificate. Obtaining a replacement share certificate can be a time consuming process and slows down many a Wolverton home move. Where a reissued share certificate is required, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (where relevant) for this sooner rather than later.

All being well we will complete the disposal of our £ 225000 apartment in Wolverton in just under a week. The landlords agents has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and 3 years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge an administration fee for a leasehold conveyance in Wolverton?

Wolverton conveyancing on leasehold flats usually necessitates the buyer’s conveyancer submitting questions for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to respond to these enquiries most will be willing to assist. They may invoice a reasonable administration fee for answering questions or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average fee for the information that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some situations it is in excess of £800. The administration charge invoiced by the landlord must be sent together with a summary of rights and obligations in relation to administration fees, without which the charge is not strictly payable. Reality however dictates that one has little option but to pay whatever is requested of you if you want to exchange contracts with the buyer.

What are the frequently found deficiencies that you encounter in leases for Wolverton properties?

Leasehold conveyancing in Wolverton is not unique. All leases are unique and drafting errors can sometimes mean that certain clauses are missing. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• A provision to repair to or maintain parts of the property
• Insurance obligations
• A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
• Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

A defective lease will likely cause issues when trying to sell a property primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Santander, Chelsea Building Society, and Bank of Ireland all have very detailed requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is defective they may refuse to provide security, obliging the buyer to withdraw.

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

How is the lease structured?