I own a freehold house in Oldham but still charged rent, why is this and what is this?

It is rare for properties in Oldham and has limited impact for conveyancing in Oldham 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 hundreds of years, but the Rent Charge Act 1977 barred the creation of fresh rentcharges from 1977 onwards.

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

We wanted to use a property lawyer in Oldham for our home move. Our broker has since notified us that our mortgage lenders The Royal Bank of Scotland won't deal with them. Surely this is unduly restrictive?

A bank can direct that an approved conveyancer act for it. You would be expected to meet the cost of this. Try using our search facility to locate a solicitor to carry conveyancing in Oldham on the The Royal Bank of Scotland member panel.

I opted to have a survey carried out on a property in Oldham in advance of retaining lawyers. I have been informed that there is a flying freehold element to the house. My surveyor has said that some lenders may refuse to give a loan on a flying freehold property.

It varies from the lender to lender. Santander has different requirements from Nationwide. If you call us we can investigate further via the appropriate lender. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can help as they are accustomed to dealing with flying freeholds in Oldham. Conveyancing may be slightly more expensive based on your lender's requirements.

I am looking at a two flats in Oldham both have approximately fifty years unexpired on the leases. Will this present a problem?

There are plenty of short leases in Oldham. The lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the premises for a prescribed time frame. As a lease shortens the value of the lease decreases and it becomes more expensive to acquire a lease extension. This is why it is advisable to extend the lease term. It is often difficult to sell a property with a short lease because mortgage lenders less inclined to grant a loan on properties of this type. Lease enfranchisement can be a protracted process. We recommend you get professional assistance from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this field.

Oldham Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Queries Prior to buying

On the whole the outlay for major works tend not to be included within service charges, albeit that there some managing agents in Oldham require leasehold owners to pay into a sinking fund and this is used to offset against larger repairs or maintenance. How many of the leaseholders are in arrears for their service charge payments? Where a Oldham lease has fewer than 80 years it will affect the salability of the apartment. It is worth checking with your mortgage company that they are content with residual term of the lease. Leases with fewer than 80 years remaining means that you will almost definitely have to extend the lease sooner rather than later and you need to have some idea of what this would cost. For most Oldhamlease extensions you would need to own the property for 24 months in order to be eligible to extend the lease.

My wife and I have recently appointed a conveyancing solicitor in Oldham. I I would like to check if they are listed on the lender's conveyancing panel. Could you advise?

One option is to call the lawyer and ask them if they are on the bank's approved list. If that does not help call us and we can make some checks for you. Should the firm not be on the bank panel we can certainly arrange a quality conveyancing solicitor in Oldham on the panel for your mortgage company.