Fixed-fee leasehold conveyancing in Bromley:

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Any conveyancing solicitor can theoretically deal with your leasehold conveyancing in Bromley, your mortgage provider may unwilling to work with them if the firm are not on their list of approved solicitors for conveyancing

Recently asked questions relating to Bromley leasehold conveyancing

Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Bromley. Before I set the wheels in motion I would like to find out the number of years remaining on the lease.

Assuming the lease is recorded at the land registry - and 99.9% are in Bromley - 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 only have 72 years remaining on my lease in Bromley. I am keen to get lease extension but my landlord is missing. What are my options?

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 an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be extended by the magistrate. However, you will be required to prove that you or your lawyers have made all reasonable attempts to track down the freeholder. For most situations a specialist should be helpful to conduct investigations and to produce a report which can be accepted by the court as evidence that the landlord can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer both on proving the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing Bromley.

Looking forward to complete next month on a leasehold property in Bromley. Conveyancing lawyers assured me that they are sending me a report within the next couple of days. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

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

  • Will you be prohibited or prevented from having pets in the property?
  • Whether the lease restricts you from letting out the flat, or working from home
  • You must be told what constitutes 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 sinking fund?
  • I don't know whether the lease allows me to alter or improve anything in the flat - you should know whether it applies to all alterations or just structural alteration, and whether consent is required
  • Responsibility for repairing the window frames For details of the information to be included in your report on your leasehold property in Bromley please enquire of your lawyer in ahead of your conveyancing in Bromley

    • I have just started marketing my basement apartment in Bromley.Conveyancing has not commenced but I have just received a half-yearly service charge demand – what should I do?

    It best that you clear the invoice 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 managing agents 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.

    Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Bromley from the perspective of speeding up the sale process?

    • Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Bromley can be bypassed if you get in touch lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information needed by the purchasers’ lawyers.
    • If you have carried out any alterations to the property would they have required Landlord’s approval? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Bromley state that internal structural alterations or addition of wooden flooring require a licence issued by the Landlord approving such changes. Where you dont have the paperwork in place do not contact the landlord without checking with your conveyancer in the first instance.
  • A minority of Bromley leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is financially capable of paying the yearly 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 service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their solicitors.
  • If there is a history of any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are settled prior to the flat being marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be nervous about purchasing a flat where a dispute is unresolved. You may need to swallow your pride and pay any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. 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 better to reveal the dispute as historic as opposed to unsettled.
  • If you have the benefit of shareholding in the freehold, you should ensure that you hold the original share document. Organising a duplicate share certificate is often a time consuming process and delays many a Bromley home move. Where a duplicate share is necessary, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (if applicable) for this at the earliest opportunity.

    • My wife and I have hit a brick wall in negotiating a lease extension in Bromley. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal adjudicate on premiums?

    Most certainly. We are happy to put you in touch with a Bromley conveyancing firm who can help.

    An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a Bromley residence is 70 Andace Park Gardens 133-149 Widmore Road in November 2013. Tribunal determined that the premium payable for the lease extension was £10,052 This case related to 1 flat. The remaining number of years on the lease was 72 years.