My conveyancer has identified a a legal deficiency with the lease for the flat we are purchasing in Adamsdown. The other side have put forward title insurance as a solution. We are happy with insurance and will pay for it. Our conveyancing practitioner says that he must be satisfied that the mortgage company is happy with this solution. Who is the client here, us or the mortgage company ?

Even though you have a mortgage offer from the mortgage company does not mean to say that the property will meet their conditions for the purposes of a mortgage. Your lawyer has to ensure that the lease has to comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook conditions. You and the bank are the client. These conveyancing instructions have to be complied with.

About to place a bid on a leasehold property in Adamsdown. The selling agents assure me that it is the norm for flats in Adamsdown to have less than 75 years unexpired on the lease. I am taking out a mortgage with Tesco Bank. Is this going to be acceptable if the lease has 72 years remaining.

Most leasehold conveyancing experts should be able to deal with a lease extension. if you are getting a mortgage then your lender may insist that the lease be extended before competition. Tesco Bank have specific requirements as set out in the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook in relation to minimum unexpired lease terms. As of 18/12/2024 the requirements read as follows :

I have been on the look out for a leasehold apartment up to £245,000 and identified one close by in Adamsdown I like with open areas and railway links nearby, the downside is that it's only got 61 remaining years left on the lease. There is not much else in Adamsdown suitable, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake purchasing a lease with such few years left?

If you require a home loan the remaining unexpired lease term will likely be problematic. Reduce the offer by the expected lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the current owner has owned the premises for a minimum of twenty four months you could request that they start the process of the extension and then assign it to you. You can add 90 years to the current lease term with a zero ground rent applied. You should speak to your conveyancing solicitor about this matter.

We are four weeks into a freehold purchase having been directed to solicitors by the estate agent to carry out the conveyancing in Adamsdown. I am am extremely frustrated with the quality of service. Could you you assist me in finding new solicitors?

A conveyancer would have to be really bad in order to consider changing them. Has the loan offer been generated? If so you will need to inform them of the replacement conveyancer and get the mortgage documents are re-sent. Your solicitor ideally needs to be on the banks panel to avoid supplemental costs and delays. So that should be your starting point. Our find a solicitor tool will help you find a lender approved conveyancer for your home move in Adamsdown

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Adamsdown from the perspective of expediting the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Adamsdown can be bypassed if you appoint lawyers the minute you market your property and ask them to collate the leasehold information which will be required by the purchasers’ representatives.
If you have had any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are settled prior to the flat being put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be nervous about purchasing a property where a dispute is unresolved. You will have to accept that you will have to pay any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal particulars of the dispute to the buyers, but it is clearly preferable to present the dispute as historic as opposed to unsettled. A minority of Adamsdown leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is able to meet the yearly service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their lawyers. The majority of freeholders or Management Companies in Adamsdown charge for providing management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should discover the actual amount of the charges. The management pack sought on or before finding a buyer, thus reducing delays. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most common reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Adamsdown. If you are supposed to have a share in the Management Company, you should make sure that you hold the original share certificate. Organising a replacement share certificate can be a lengthy formality and slows down many a Adamsdown conveyancing deal. If a reissued share certificate is needed, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (if applicable) for this sooner rather than later.

I invested in buying a 2 bed flat in Adamsdown, conveyancing having been completed half a dozen years ago. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Corresponding flats in Adamsdown with a long lease are worth £211,000. The ground rent is £45 invoiced every year. The lease expires on 21st October 2092

You have 68 years unexpired we estimate the premium for your lease extension to span between £9,500 and £11,000 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of comprehensive due diligence. Do not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be other issues that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action based on this information before getting professional advice.