Experts for Leasehold Conveyancing in Writtle

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When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Writtle, you will need to chose a conveyancing solicitor with leasehold experience. Whether your mortgage company is to be Santander, RBS or Bradford & Bingley make sure you choose a lawyer on their panel. Feel free to use our search tool

Examples of recent questions relating to leasehold conveyancing in Writtle

I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Writtle. Before I get started I would like to find out the number of years remaining on the lease.

Assuming the lease is recorded at the land registry - and 99.9% are in Writtle - 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.

I have recently realised that I have 72 years unexpired on my lease in Writtle. I now wish to extend my lease but my landlord is missing. What should I do?

If you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be granted an extra 90 years by the Court. You will be obliged to prove that you have done all that could be expected to find the freeholder. On the whole a specialist may be useful to try and locate and to produce an expert document to be used as proof that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a property lawyer both on investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing Writtle.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold flat in Writtle. Conveyancing and Godiva Mortgages Ltd mortgage organised. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1998. The conveyancing practitioner in Writtle who previously acted has long since retired.Do I pay?

The first thing you should do is make enquiries of HMLR to make sure that this person is in fact the new freeholder. It is not necessary to instruct a Writtle conveyancing firm to do this as it can be done on-line for less than a fiver. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Writtle from the perspective of saving time on the sale process?

  • Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Writtle can be avoided where you instruct lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information needed by the purchasers’ solicitors.
  • If you have carried out any alterations to the premises would they have required Landlord’s permission? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Writtle leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or addition of wooden flooring necessitate a licence from the Landlord acquiescing to such works. Where you dont have the consents to hand do not communicate with the landlord without contacting your lawyer before hand.
  • A minority of Writtle leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, it would be prudent to notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. Any bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are able to meet 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 actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their lawyers.
  • If you have had any disputes with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are settled before the property is marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be nervous about purchasing a property where there is a current dispute. You may have to bite the bullet and 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 ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal particulars of the dispute to the buyers, but it is clearly preferable to present the dispute as historic rather than unresolved.
  • You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be advisable verify this via your lawyers. A buyer’s conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the lease term is below 80 years. It is therefore essential at an early stage that you consider whether the lease requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

    • We expect to complete our sale of a £200000 flat in Writtle on Monday in a week. The management company has quoted £300 for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and previous years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge an administration fee for a leasehold conveyance in Writtle?

    Writtle conveyancing on leasehold apartments often involves the buyer’s solicitor sending questions for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is not legally bound to respond to these enquiries most will be willing to assist. They are at liberty charge a reasonable administration fee for responding to questions or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average costs for the paperwork that you are referring to is £350, in some cases it is in excess of £800. The management information fee demanded by the landlord must be accompanied by a synopsis of entitlements and obligations in respect of administration fees, otherwise the charge is not strictly payable. In reality you have little option but to pay whatever is requested of you should you wish to complete the sale of your home.

    Writtle Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Queries before Purchasing

      You should want to find out as much as possible regarding the managing agents as they will either make your living at the property much easier or uncomfortable. As the proprietor of a leasehold property you are often in the clutches of the managing agents both financially and when it comes to every day issues such as the cleanliness of the communal areas. Enquire of prospective neighbours what they think of them. On a final note, be sure you discover the dates that you are obliged pay the service charge to the relevant party and specifically what it includes. You should be aware that where the lease has no more than eighty years it will have adverse implications on the value of the property. Check with your lender that they are happy with remaining years on the lease. A short lease means that you will probably need a lease extension at some point and it is worth finding out how much this would cost. Remember, in most cases you will need to own the property for a couple of years in order to be eligible to extend the lease. The answer will be helpful as a) areas can result in problems in the building as the communal areas may start to deteriorate if maintenance remain unpaid b) if the leasehold owners have a dispute with the managing agents you will need to have full disclosure

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Writtle