My conveyancer has uncovered a a problem with the lease for the apartment we are buying in Headington. The seller’s lawyers have offered title insurance as a workaround. We are happy with insurance and will pay for it. Our solicitor has advised that he must check that the mortgage company is content with this solution. Who is the client here, us or the lender?

The short answer to your last question is that, notwithstanding the potential for a conflict of interest, you and the lender are the client. Your solicitor must comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook provisions. The UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook conditions require your lawyer to disclose issues such as defects with the lease so that the lender can be afforded the opportunity to check with their valuer as to the extent that the value of the property is affected. Should you refuse to allow your lawyer to make the appropriate notification then your lawyer will have no choice but to discontinue acting for you.

Why do I have to pay up front for my conveyancing in Headington?

If you are buying a property in Headington your lawyer will request that you to provide them with monies to cover the search fees. Normally this is requested to cover the fees of the Local Authority Search. When the deposit is as part of the total price then this should be required immediately in advance of exchange of contracts. The closing balance that is due should be sent to your lawyer a few days prior to the completion date.

Just had an offer accepted on a new build flat in Headington. Conveyancing is necessary evil at the best of times but I have never purchased a new build flat before. What sort of enquires would be asked in new build legal work.

Set out below are examples of a selection of leasehold new build enquiries that you can expect your new-build leasehold conveyancing in Headington

Please supply evidence that the form of Lease proposed has been approved by the Land Registry. Has the Lease plan been approved by the Land Registry and if not when will they be lodged for this purpose? Will control of the Management Company (if any) be handed over to purchasers on completion of the last sale or earlier? If there are lifts in the building, please confirm that the owners of flats on the ground and basement floors will not be required to contribute towards the cost of maintenance and renewal.

What tools are available to locate a Headington law firm on the Britannia conveyancing panel? I am a keen cyclist and am willing to travel upto 20miles to meet the solicitor.

Feel free to make use of the search on this page. Please choose the lender and your location and you will see a number of Headington conveyancing lawyers located nearest you. We have detailed some Headington conveyancing firms at the bottom of this page and you can call them to verify whether they are on the Britannia panel

I am looking at a two maisonettes in Headington which have in the region of fifty years left on the lease term. Will this present a problem?

There is no doubt about it. A leasehold apartment in Headington is a deteriorating asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The closer the lease gets to its expiry date, the more it reduces the salability of the premises. The majority of buyers and lenders, leases with under eighty years become less and less marketable. On a more upbeat note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the property for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of a property with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Headington conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. More often than not it is possible to negotiate informally with the freeholder to extend the lease. They may agree to a smaller lump sum and an increase in the ground rent, but to shorter extension terms in return. You need to ensure that any new terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.

Headington Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Questions you should ask before Purchasing

On the whole the cost for major works are not built into the service charges, although some managing agents in Headington obliged leaseholders to contribute towards a sinking fund and this is used to offset against larger repairs or maintenance. Is anyone aware of any major works anticipated that will likely add a premium to the maintenance charges? The prefered form of lease structure is a share of the freehold. In this arrangement the tenants enjoy being in charge if their destiny and even though a managing agent is often employed if it is bigger than a house conversion, the managing agent acts for the leaseholders themselves.