Top Five Questions relating to Binfield leasehold conveyancing
Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only Fifty years left on my flat in Binfield. I now wish to extend my lease but my landlord is can not be found. What should I do?
If you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be lengthened by the magistrate. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you have used your best endeavours to track down the landlord. On the whole an enquiry agent would be useful to carry out a search and prepare a report to be used as proof that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a property lawyer both on investigating the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court overseeing Binfield.
I’m about to sell my ground floor apartment in Binfield.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just received a yearly service charge invoice – Do I pay up?
It best that you discharge the invoice 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 managing agents will not acknowledge the buyer until 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. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.
Back In 2001, I bought a leasehold flat in Binfield. Conveyancing and Barnsley Building Society mortgage organised. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1992. The conveyancing practitioner in Binfield who previously acted has long since retired.Any advice?
The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to be sure that this person is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Binfield conveyancing lawyer to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for a few pound. You should note that regardless, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.
I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a two flats in Binfield which have approximately 50 years left on the lease term. Do I need to be concerned?
There is no doubt about it. A leasehold apartment in Binfield is a deteriorating asset as a result of the shortening lease. The nearer the lease gets to its expiry date, the more it reduces the marketability of the premises. For most buyers and lenders, 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 premises 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 Binfield conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. More often than not it is possible to negotiate informally with the freeholder to extend 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 any new 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.
Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on the sale of our £400000 garden flat in Binfield in seven days. The managing agents has quoted £336 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and 3 years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in Binfield?
Binfield conveyancing on leasehold flats often necessitates the purchaser’s solicitor sending questions for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to respond to such questions the majority will be willing to do so. They are at liberty charge a reasonable administration fee for responding to questions or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average fee for the paperwork that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some transactions it exceeds £800. The management information fee invoiced by the landlord must be sent together with a synopsis of rights and obligations in relation to administration charges, otherwise the invoice is technically not due. Reality however dictates that you have little choice but to pay whatever is demanded should you wish to sell the property.
I acquired a 1st floor flat in Binfield, conveyancing was carried out 2003. How much will my lease extension cost? Equivalent flats in Binfield with an extended lease are worth £250,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 per annum. The lease ceases on 21st October 2093
You have 68 years unexpired we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £8,600 and £9,800 as well as legals.
The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of detailed due diligence. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be other concerns that need to be considered and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action placing reliance on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.
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