I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Yarm On Tees. Before diving in I would like to find out the unexpired term of the lease.

Assuming the lease is recorded at the land registry - and 99.9% are in Yarm On Tees - then the leasehold title will always include the short particulars 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 am hoping to complete next month on a garden flat in Yarm On Tees. Conveyancing lawyers assured me that they are sending me a report on Monday. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Yarm On Tees should include some of the following:

• The length of the lease term You should be advised as what happens when the lease expires, and aware of the importance of not letting the lease term falling below eighty years

Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, freeholder

The total extent of the premises. This will be the apartment itself but might incorporate a roof space or basement if applicable.

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

Whether your lease has a provision for a reserve fund?

Changes to the flat (alterations and additions)

What the implications are if you breach a clause of your lease? For a comprehensive list of information to be included in your report on your leasehold property in Yarm On Tees please ask your lawyer in ahead of your conveyancing in Yarm On Tees

I am employed by a busy estate agency in Yarm On Tees where we have experienced a number of leasehold sales put at risk due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given conflicting advice from local Yarm On Tees conveyancing solicitors. Can you clarify whether the owner of a flat can instigate the lease extension process for the buyer?

Provided that the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the proposed purchaser need not have to sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.

Alternatively, it may be possible 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.

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Yarm On Tees from the perspective of speeding up the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Yarm On Tees can be reduced if you get in touch lawyers as soon as you market your property and ask them to collate the leasehold documentation needed by the purchasers’ lawyers.
• Many landlords or Management Companies in Yarm On Tees levy fees for providing management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should discover the actual amount of the charges. The management pack sought on or before finding a buyer, thus reducing delays. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most usual cause of frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Yarm On Tees.

In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s approval? Have you, for example laid down wooden flooring? Most leases in Yarm On Tees state that internal structural changes or installing wooden flooring require a licence issued by the Landlord approving such changes. Where you fail to have the paperwork in place you should not communicate with the landlord without contacting your conveyancer first.

If there is a history of conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are settled before the property is marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be warry about purchasing a property 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 prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as over rather than unsettled.

You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but you should double-check via your solicitors. A buyer’s lawyer will be unlikely to recommend 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 early stage 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.

If all goes to plan we aim to complete the sale of our £450000 maisonette in Yarm On Tees next week. The managing agents has quoted £336 for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and previous years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in Yarm On Tees?

Yarm On Tees conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes normally results in fees being levied by freeholders :

• Answering conveyancing due diligence enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in Yarm On Tees
• Supplying insurance information
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your lawyer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Yarm On Tees leasehold premises is £350. For Yarm On Tees conveyancing transactions it is customary for the seller to pay for these costs. The landlord or their agents are under no legal obligation to answer such questions most will be willing to do so - albeit often at exorbitant prices where the fees bear little relation to the work involved. Unfortunately there is no law that requires fixed charges for administrative tasks. Neither is there any legal time frame by which they are obliged to supply answers.

Yarm On Tees Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Questions you should ask before Purchasing

On the whole the cost for major works tend not to be included within maintenance charges, albeit that some managing agents in Yarm On Tees ask leaseholders to pay into a reserve fund and this is used to offset against larger repairs or maintenance. How many of the leaseholders are in arrears for their maintenance charge payments? Is the freehold reversion owned collectively by the leaseholders?

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Yarm On Tees