Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Horfield:

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While any conveyancing solicitor can theoretically handle your leasehold conveyancing in Horfield, your mortgage provider may not be willing to work with them if the firm are not on their list of approved solicitors for conveyancing

Common questions relating to Horfield leasehold conveyancing

I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Horfield. Before diving in I require certainty as to the unexpired term of the lease.

Assuming the lease is recorded at the land registry - and 99.9% are in Horfield - 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 am hoping to sign contracts shortly on a ground floor flat in Horfield. Conveyancing lawyers 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 Horfield should include some of the following:

  • Defining your legal entitlements in relation to common areas in the block.By way of example, does the lease contain a right of way over an accessway or hallways?
  • Does the lease prohibit wood flooring?
  • You need to be told what counts as a Nuisance in the lease
  • An explanation as to the provision in the lease to pay service charges - with regard to both the building, and the more general rights a leaseholder has
  • Whether your lease has a provision for a reserve fund?
  • Changes to the flat (alterations and additions)
  • What the implications are if you breach a clause of your lease? For details of the information to be included in your report on your leasehold property in Horfield please enquire of your lawyer in ahead of your conveyancing in Horfield

    • I am a negotiator for a busy estate agency in Horfield where we have experienced a few flat sales jeopardised due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received conflicting advice from local Horfield conveyancing solicitors. Please can you shed some light as to whether the vendor of a flat can initiate the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

    Provided that the seller has been the owner 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. This means 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 has to be done prior to, or at the same time as completion of the sale.

    An alternative approach is 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.

    All being well we will complete our sale of a £275000 maisonette in Horfield on Monday in a week. The management company has quoted £408 for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and previous years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in Horfield?

    Horfield conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes often necessitates the purchaser’s solicitor submitting enquiries for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is not legally bound to respond to these enquiries most will be willing to do so. They may charge a reasonable charge for responding to enquiries 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 cases it is above £800. The management information fee levied by the landlord must be sent together with a summary of rights and obligations in relation to administration fees, otherwise the invoice is not strictly payable. Reality however dictates that one has no choice but to pay whatever is demanded should you wish to exchange contracts with the buyer.

    What makes a Horfield lease unmortgageable?

    Leasehold conveyancing in Horfield is not unique. Most leases is drafted differently and drafting errors can result in certain provisions are not included. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

    • A provision to repair to or maintain elements of the premises
    • A duty to insure the building
    • Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
    • Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

    You will have difficulties when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Lloyds TSB Bank, Virgin Money, and Godiva Mortgages Ltd all have very detailed conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to provide security, obliging the buyer to withdraw.

    Leasehold Conveyancing in Horfield - Sample of Questions you should ask before Purchasing

      The prefered form of lease arrangement is if the freehold reversion is in the ownership of the leaseholders. In this arrangement the tenants have being in charge if their destiny and notwithstanding that a managing agent is usually retained where the building is larger than a house conversion, the managing agent acts for the leaseholders themselves. Are any of leasehold owners in arrears of their service charge liability? What is the the remaining lease term?

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Horfield