I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Crosby. Before I get started I require certainty as to the number of years remaining on the lease.

Assuming the lease is recorded at the land registry - and 99.9% are in Crosby - 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 68 years left on my lease in Crosby. I now wish to get lease extension but my freeholder is absent. What are my options?

On the basis that you meet the appropriate requirements, 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. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have made all reasonable attempts to track down the freeholder. 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 freeholder can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer in relation to devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing Crosby.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold flat in Crosby. Conveyancing and National Westminster Bank mortgage are in place. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the freehold. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1995. The conveyancing solicitor in Crosby 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 indeed the new freeholder. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Crosby conveyancing lawyer to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

I've recently bought a leasehold flat in Crosby. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. However, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to ensure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.

If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).

Completion in due on our sale of a £150000 flat in Crosby next Wednesday . The management company has quoted £372 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and 3 years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in Crosby?

For the majority of leasehold sales in Crosby conveyancing will involve, queries regarding the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :

• Answering pre-exchange questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Crosby
• Copies of the building insurance and schedule
• 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 Crosby leasehold property is £350. For Crosby 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 the information.

Crosby Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Sample of Queries before Purchasing

Does the lease have onerous restrictions? Is anyone aware of any major works in the near future that will increase the service fees? For many Crosby leaseholds the outlay for major works tend not to be built into the maintenance charges, although a few managing agents in Crosby obliged leaseholders to contribute towards a sinking fund created for the specific intention of establishing a fund for major repairs or maintenance.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Crosby