I am the registered owner of a freehold house in St Ives but still invoiced for rent, why is this and what is this?

It is rare for properties in St Ives and has limited impact for conveyancing in St Ives 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 have existed for hundreds of years, but the Rent Charge Act 1977 barred the generation of fresh rentcharges post 1977.

Previous rentcharges can now be redeemed by making a lump sum payment under the Act. Any rentcharges that are still in existence in 2037 will be dispensed with completely.

Despite weeks of looking the Title Certificate and documents to my house are lost. The lawyers who did the conveyancing in St Ives 10 years ago no longer exist. Will I be able to sell the house?

As long as you have a registered title the information relating to your ownership will be evidenced by HMLR with a Title Number. It is possible to execute a search at the Land Registry, find your property and secure current copies of the Registered Entries for a small fee. Where the title is Leasehold then the Land Registry will usually retain a certified copy of the Registered Lease and again, a copy can be retrieved for a small fee.

I've recently found out that there is a flying freehold issue on a house I put an offer in a fortnight ago in what should have been a straight forward, chain free conveyancing. St Ives is where the house is located. Can you offer any guidance?

Flying freeholds in St Ives are unusual but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even where you use a solicitor outside St Ives you must be sure that your lawyer goes through the deeds thoroughly. Your bank may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in St Ives may ascertain that this is not enough and that the deeds be re-written to give you the most up to date legal protection. If so, the next door neighbour also had to sign up to the revised deeds.It is possible that your lender will not accept the situation so the sooner you find out the better. You should also check with your insurance broker as to whether they will insure a flying freehold property.

Can you offer any advice when it comes to appointing a St Ives conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a conveyancer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a St Ives conveyancing practice) it is imperative that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We recommend that you talk with several firms including non St Ives conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. The following questions might be of use:

How experienced is the practice with lease extension legislation? What are the legal fees for lease extension work?

St Ives Leasehold Conveyancing - Sample of Questions you should consider before buying

Its a good idea to discover as much as possible about the managing agents as they will either make your life much simpler or a lot more difficult. As the proprietor of a leasehold property you will be in the clutches of the managing agents both financially and when it comes to practical matters like the upkeep of the common parts. Enquire of other people what they think of their management. On a final note, investigate as to the dates that you are obliged pay the service charge to the managing agents and specifically what you get for your money. You should be aware if it is fewer than 80 years it will affect the marketability of the property. Check with your bank that they are content with remaining years on the lease. Leases with less than 80 years remaining means that you will almost definitely have to extend the lease at some point and you need to have some idea of how much this would cost. Remember, in most cases you will need to own the premises for a couple of years before you are legally able to extend the lease. On the whole the outlay for major works tend not to be included within service charges, albeit that a few managing agents in St Ives obliged leaseholders to pay into a reserve fund created for the specific intention of building a fund for larger repairs or maintenance.

My dad purchased his flat in St Ives ten years ago. He has got married, divorced and in recent months got married again. He now intends to the sell the St Ives property. I suspect that he will simply be requested to provide a copy of his marriage certificates to the conveyancer but he is anxious it could delay the sale of the apartment. Is it worth updating the land title documents for the house?

The is no need to bring up to date the title for the property on the basis that you have the proof needed to show how the change of name has come about.

The buyer’s solicitor will examine the land registry entries and requisition evidence to prove the name change e.g. marriage certificates.