Why is leasehold purchase conveyancing in Rye is more expensive?

Rye leasehold conveyancing transactions usually involve additional investigations than freeholds including investigating the Lease, liaising with the Landlord such as serving applicable notices on the Landlord or managing agent, obtaining up-to-date service charge and management information, obtaining Landlord’s consents and reviewing management accounts and formation documents.

I used Action Conveyancing several years past for my conveyancing in Rye. Now, I need my files however cannot find the solicitor. What do I do?

Do contact the Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) to help locate your conveyancing files. They can be contacted on please contact on 0870 606 2555. Alternatively, you should use their online form to make an enquiry. You will need to provide the SRA with as much information as possible to assist their search, including the name and address in Rye of the conveyancing firm of solicitors you previously retained, the name of conveyancing solicitor with whom you had dealings, and the date on which you last had dealings with the firm.

I have been on the look out for a ground for flat up to £195,000 and identified one near me in Rye I like with a park and transport links nearby, however it only has 52 years on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Rye suitable, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error purchasing a lease with such few years left?

If you require a home loan the shortness of the lease will likely be a potential deal breaker. Reduce the price by the expected lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the current owner has owned the property for a minimum of 2 years you could request that they start the process of the extension and then assign it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the existing lease term with a zero ground rent applied. You should speak to your conveyancing solicitor concerning this matter.

I need to instruct a conveyancing solicitor for leasehold conveyancing in Rye. I have stumble across a site which appears to be the ideal answer If it is possible to get all the legals done via phone that would be preferable. Do I need to be concerned? What are the potential pitfalls?

As usual with these online conveyancers you need to read ALL the small print - did you notice the extra charge for dealing with the mortgage?

I've recently bought a leasehold flat in Rye. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before my ownership?

Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. Strange as it may seem, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to ensure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.

If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).

I am the registered owner of a 1 bedroom flat in Rye, conveyancing formalities finalised 3 years ago. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Corresponding flats in Rye with over 90 years remaining are worth £185,000. The ground rent is £65 invoiced annually. The lease ceases on 21st October 2085

With 60 years left to run the likely cost is going to range between £20,000 and £23,000 plus costs.

The figure above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to advice on a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed investigations. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt additional concerns that need to be taken into account and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward based on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.