I am the registered owner of a freehold property in Chulmleigh yet pay rent, why is this and what is this?

It’s unusual for properties in Chulmleigh and has limited impact for conveyancing in Chulmleigh but some freehold properties in England (particularly common in North West England) pay an annual sum known as a Chief Rent or a Rentcharge to a third party who has no other legal interest in the land.

Rentcharge payments are usually between £2.00 and £5.00 per year. Rentcharges date back many centuries, but the Rent Charge Act 1977 barred the generation of new rentcharges post 1977.

Previous rentcharges can now be redeemed by making a one off payment under the Act. Any rentcharges that are still in existence post 2037 will be extinguished.

Are there restrictive covenants that are commonly identified as part of conveyancing in Chulmleigh?

Restrictive covenants can be picked up when reviewing land registry title as part of the legal transfer of property in Chulmleigh. An 1874 stipulation that was seen was ‘The houses to be erected on the estate are each to be of a uniform elevation in accordance with the drawings to be prepared or approved by the vendor’s surveyor…’

I have been on the look out for a flat up to £235,500 and found one near me in Chulmleigh I like with amenity areas and railway links nearby, however it only has 52 years unexpired on the lease. There is not much else in Chulmleigh in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error buying a lease with such few years left?

Should you require a mortgage the remaining unexpired lease term will likely be a potential deal breaker. Reduce the price by the amount the lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the current proprietor has owned the premises for at least twenty four months you can request that they start the process of the extension and pass it to you. You can add 90 years to the current lease and have £0 ground rent by law. You should speak to your conveyancing solicitor concerning this matter.

I am looking at a two apartments in Chulmleigh which have approximately forty five years unexpired on the lease term. should I be concerned?

There are no two ways about it. A leasehold apartment in Chulmleigh is a deteriorating asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The closer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it reduces the marketability of the property. For most purchasers and lenders, leases with under 75 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 premises 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 Chulmleigh conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. A more straightforward and quicker method of extending would be to contact your landlord directly and sound him out on the prospect of extending 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 the agreed 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.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Chulmleigh - A selection of Queries before buying

Who takes responsibility for maintaining and repairing the building? You should want to discover as much as you can about the managing agents as they will either make living at the property much simpler or problematic. Being a leasehold owner you are often in the clutches of the managing agents both financially and when it comes to daily issues like the cleanliness of the common parts. You should not be shy to ask prospective neighbours what they think of their service. Finally, find out the dates that you are obliged pay the service charge to the managing agents and precisely what it includes. The majority of Chulmleigh leasehold properties will be liable to pay a service charge for the upkeep of the building invoiced on behalf of the freeholder. Where you acquire the flat you will have to pay this amount, usually quarterly accross the year. This could vary from two or three hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for bigger purpose-built buildings. There will also be a ground rent to be met yearly, normally this is not a large sum, say approximately £50-£100 but you should to enquire it because occasionally it could be many hundreds of pounds.

Why do Chulmleigh conveyancing costs differ for leasehold and freehold properties?

When buying a leasehold property there is more work involved purely due to the fact that usually there are further parties involved in the form of the freeholder and/or Management Agents. As part of a lawyers enquiries they will check that all ground rent and service charges are paid up to date amongst other general leasehold matters. For this reason, the Sellers lawyers usually have to refer to the freeholder or Managing Agent for their replies to our questions. This may be time consuming and beyond the lawyers control