I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Haslington. Before diving in I would like to find out the remaining lease term.

Assuming the lease is recorded at the land registry - and most are in Haslington - 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.

There are only Fifty years left on my flat in Haslington. I now want to extend my lease but my freeholder is missing. What options are available to me?

On the basis that you qualify, 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 granted an extra 90 years by the Court. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have used your best endeavours to track down the landlord. On the whole a specialist may be useful to conduct investigations and prepare an expert document to be used as proof that the landlord can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a property lawyer in relation to proving the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Haslington.

Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my ground floor apartment in Haslington.Conveyancing has not commenced but I have just had a half-yearly service charge invoice – what should I do?

It best that you clear the service charge 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 management companies will not acknowledge the buyer unless 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. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

I've found a house that appears to meet my requirements, at a reasonable figure which is making it more attractive. I have just discovered that the title is leasehold as opposed to freehold. I am assuming that there are particular concerns buying a leasehold house in Haslington. Conveyancing solicitors have not yet been instructed. Will my lawyers set out the implications of buying a leasehold house in Haslington ?

The majority of houses in Haslington are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can assist with the conveyancing process. We note that you are purchasing in Haslington so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Haslington conveyancing practitioner and check that they are used to dealing with leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the number of years remaining. As a leaseholder you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions for example requiring the freeholder’spermission to carry out alterations. You may also be required to pay a maintenance charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the house is located on an estate. Your conveyancer will appraise you on the various issues.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold flat in Haslington. Conveyancing and The Mortgage Works mortgage organised. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1994. The conveyancing practitioner in Haslington who acted for me is not around.What should I do?

The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to make sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is indeed the new freeholder. You do not need to instruct a Haslington conveyancing lawyer to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for £3. Rest assured that regardless, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

Haslington Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Questions you should ask before Purchasing

Most Haslington leasehold apartments will have a service charge for maintenance of the building invoiced on behalf of the management company. Should you purchase the apartment you will have to pay this contribution, usually periodically during the year. This may be anything from two or three hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for blocks with lifts and large common grounds. There will also be a rentcharge to be met yearly, this is usually not a large figure, say around £25-£75 but you need to enquire as occasionally it could be many hundreds of pounds. How much is the service charge and ground rent on the apartment? Who is in charge of the building?

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Haslington