Cambourne leasehold conveyancing: Q and A’s
I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Cambourne. Before I set the wheels in motion I would like to find out the unexpired term of the lease.
If the lease is registered - and 99.9% are in Cambourne - 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.
Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only 62 years left on my lease in Cambourne. I am keen to extend my lease but my landlord is missing. What are my options?
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 lengthened by the magistrate. You will be obliged to prove that you or your lawyers have made all reasonable attempts to find the landlord. In some cases an enquiry agent may be useful to carry out a search and to produce an expert document which can be accepted by the court as proof that the landlord is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a property lawyer both on devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court covering Cambourne.
Expecting to complete next month on a studio apartment in Cambourne. Conveyancing solicitors have said that they are sending me a report on Monday. What should I be looking out for?
Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Cambourne should include some of the following:
- Are pets allowed in the flat?
My wife and I purchased a leasehold flat in Cambourne. Conveyancing and Barclays mortgage organised. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1997. The conveyancing practitioner in Cambourne who acted for me is not around.Any advice?
First make enquiries of HMLR to be sure that this person is indeed the new freeholder. You do not need to instruct a Cambourne conveyancing lawyer 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.
I work for a long established estate agent office in Cambourne where we see a few flat sales derailed due to short leases. I have received contradictory information from local Cambourne conveyancing firms. Please can you shed some light as to whether the owner of a flat can start the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?
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. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser can avoid having to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.
An alternative approach is 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.
I purchased a ground floor flat in Cambourne, conveyancing having been completed 3 years ago. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Comparable properties in Cambourne with an extended lease are worth £268,000. The ground rent is £50 yearly. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2102
With just 78 years unexpired the likely cost is going to span between £9,500 and £11,000 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.
The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure in the absence of comprehensive investigations. Do not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other concerns that need to be taken into account and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action placing reliance on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.
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