Missing lease document
I have been in a process of buying my first BTL.
All was going well up until this last week of exchange of contracts but the seller solicitors have informed that there are no lease documents governing the property.
My solicitor is now in negotiation with the seller to pay for indemnity insurance and also in touch with my mortgage lender to see if that’s OKwith them. My solicitor also said ” Although we don’t have a copy of lease, we do have title deeds from the land registry that confirms that there is 143 years left on the lease of property”
Now my concern is, will it be difficult in selling this property in near future if I wanted to?
Also, in case we decide to extend the lease in future, will that be possible without these papers?
Should I hold my horses to buy this property given the fact all papers are not in place.
Please advise.
Thanks
Kaps
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Member Since July 2013 - Comments: 561
9:59 AM, 2nd June 2015, About 11 years ago
It depends on the freeholder….
If you cannot trust the freeholder to has got the leases right and the freeholder is not worth suing if they fail to keep to their side of the lease, then you had better look at all of them. At the end of the day if the lease says you have “Right A” but the other lease does not give you that right you have big problems.
E.g your lease says you can only park in parking space A, but the other lease say they can part in any space.
I would wish to have ALL leases check for a flat in a converted house, but would be happy not to do so in a recently build block of flats.
Member Since March 2015 - Comments: 225
10:18 AM, 2nd June 2015, About 11 years ago
Reply to the comment left by “Ian Ringrose” at “02/06/2015 – 09:59“:
Even professionally written leases on new developments can be more than a little odd. We have leases for associated underground parking which say that we don’t own the window frames but do own the glass in them??? Thank goodness the covenant to clean the inside of the windows does not extend to the CP.
Member Since January 2015 - Comments: 22
11:15 AM, 2nd June 2015, About 11 years ago
Can we not take indemnity insurance to cover any risk coming out from not comparing other lease document as the sellers confirmed that they don’t have other flat lease document, which might be right or may be wrong if they have any intention to hide some information. Can we not contact the other flat owners directly to confirm or gain a copy of lease document.
These are purpose built apartments from 1995, from the back garden there is way out to the street however it has to cross next door garden. So might be possible that there are some clauses in other flat leases which we should be aware of. Any advice should we consider it to be deal breaker concern ? This is my first BTL so little worried as we might have to sale if my daughter wants to when she grow up, and at that time we don’t want any issues affecting her capability to sale the flat.
Member Since July 2013 - Comments: 303
9:49 AM, 6th June 2015, About 11 years ago
If you need to cross next door garden etc. Then the right of access comes into play. It is possible that only ground floor flats can use or excess the garden.
While, I understand your prudence and thinking about the future. Who knows what the legislations would be in future.
The Leases,crooked landlord/Managing agents, have created a lot of grief for people. I recall this issue came to boil few years ago when grant Shapps of the Tory party was the housing minister. As normal he ducked the issue. I wonder how much the big Landlords are contributing to the political parties ?.