Top Five Questions relating to Forestdale leasehold conveyancing
I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Forestdale. Before I set the wheels in motion I require certainty as to the number of years remaining on the lease.
Assuming the lease is registered - and almost all are in Forestdale - 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 intending to let out my leasehold apartment in Forestdale. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask her. Is permission from the freeholder required?
Even though your last Forestdale conveyancing lawyer is not available you can review your lease to see if you are permitted to let out the apartment. The rule is that if the deeds are non-specific, subletting is allowed. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you need to obtain permission from your landlord or some other party before subletting. This means you not allowed to sublet in the absence of prior consent. Such consent must not not be unreasonably turned down. If your lease does not allow you to sublet you should ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.
My wife and I purchased a leasehold flat in Forestdale. Conveyancing and Virgin Money mortgage are in place. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1996. The conveyancing solicitor in Forestdale who previously acted has now retired.Do I pay?
The first thing you should do is contact the Land Registry to be sure that this person is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Forestdale conveyancing solicitor to do this as it can be done on-line for £3. You should note that in any event, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.
I am a negotiator for a reputable estate agent office in Forestdale where we see a number of leasehold sales derailed as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received contradictory information from local Forestdale conveyancing solicitors. Please can you clarify whether the vendor of a flat can initiate the lease extension formalities 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 kick-start 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 has to be done before, or simultaneously with completion of the sale.
An alternative approach is to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord 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 purchaser.
Having spent months of negotiations we simply can't agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Forestdale. Can we issue an application to the Residential Property Tribunal Service?
Absolutely. We can put you in touch with a Forestdale conveyancing firm who can help.
An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement matter before the tribunal for a Forestdale residence is The Woodlands 95 Purley Park Road in April 2009. The Tribunals own valuation produced the figure of £37,912. This case was in relation to 6 flats. The remaining number of years on the lease was 78.32 years.
What makes a Forestdale lease unacceptable for security purposes?
There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Forestdale. Most leases are individual and drafting errors can result in certain provisions are missing. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:
- Repairing obligations to or maintain elements of the premises
- Insurance obligations
- 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 a problem when selling your property if you have a defective lease as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Accord Mortgages Ltd, The Royal Bank of Scotland, and Aldermore all have very detailed requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to provide security, forcing the purchaser to pull out.
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