Leasehold Conveyancing in Harrold - Get a Quote from the leasehold experts approved by your lender

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When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Harrold, you will need to chose a conveyancing solicitor with leasehold experience. Whether your mortgage company is to be Halifax, Yorkshire Building Society or Nationwide be sure to find a lawyer on their approved list. Find a Harrold conveyancing lawyer with our search tool

Sample questions relating to Harrold leasehold conveyancing

I am hoping to complete next month on a basement flat in Harrold. Conveyancing lawyers inform me that they report fully next week. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

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

  • You should be sent a copy of the lease
  • Defining your rights in relation to common areas in the building.For instance, does the lease contain a right of way over an accessway or staircase?
  • Are you allowed to have a pet in the flat?
  • Does the lease prevent you from renting out the flat, or having a home office for business
  • Repair and maintenance of the flat
  • Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your premises and do you know what it means in practice?
  • The landlord’s obligations to repair and maintain the building. It is important that you know who is responsible for the repair and maintenance of every part of the building For details of the information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Harrold please enquire of your conveyancer in ahead of your conveyancing in Harrold

    • I've recently bought a leasehold house in Harrold. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to completion of my purchase?

    In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner 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. It is an essential part 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).

    I am employed by a reputable estate agency in Harrold where we see a number of flat sales put at risk due to short leases. I have received contradictory information from local Harrold conveyancing firms. Could you confirm whether the vendor of a flat can start the lease extension process for the buyer?

    As long as 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. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser need not have to wait 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 buyer.

    Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Harrold with the aim of speeding up the sale process?

    • A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Harrold can be bypassed where you get in touch lawyers as soon as you market your property and request that they start to collate the leasehold documentation needed by the purchasers’ lawyers.
    • The majority freeholders or Management Companies in Harrold levy fees for providing management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should discover the actual amount of the charges. The management pack can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The typical amount of time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most common reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Harrold.
  • In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s permission? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Harrold leases often stipulate that internal structural changes or laying down wooden flooring necessitate a licence from the Landlord approving such changes. Should you fail to have the paperwork to hand do not contact the landlord without contacting your conveyancer in advance.
  • Some Harrold leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, it would be prudent to notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are financially capable of paying 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 solicitors.
  • If there is a history of conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are resolved prior to the flat being marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be warry about purchasing a flat 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 ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose particulars of the dispute to the buyers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as historic as opposed to ongoing.

    • We expect to complete the sale of our £200000 maisonette in Harrold on Friday in a week. The freeholder has quoted £372 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and previous years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge an administration fee for a flat conveyance in Harrold?

    Harrold conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes more often than not involves the buyer’s conveyancer submitting questions for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is not legally bound to answer such questions most will be content to assist. They may invoice a reasonable administration fee for responding to enquiries 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 above £800. The administration charge required by the landlord must be accompanied by a synopsis of entitlements and obligations in relation to administration fees, without which the charge is not strictly payable. Reality however dictates that you have little option but to pay whatever is requested of you should you wish to exchange contracts with the buyer.

    Leasehold Conveyancing in Harrold - A selection of Queries Prior to buying

      Are any of leasehold owners in arrears of their service charge liability? How much is the ground rent and service charge? For most Harrold leaseholds the cost for major works are not built into the service charges, albeit that some managing agents in Harrold obliged tenants to contribute towards a sinking fund and this is used to offset against larger works.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Harrold