Leasehold Solicitors

Title Splits and Creating New Leases

If you own a larger property and you’re thinking of letting, converting your house into flats is a great way to boost your potential rental income. Splitting your title divides your property into multiple leasehold properties and allows you to keep the freehold, so you still have some control over the property. By splitting your title this way, you can sell or let out each new leasehold property individually – plus, you may be able to benefit from a number of tax strategies by transferring your leases into a limited company name. At Starck Uberoi, we have a dedicated title split team who have experience in these niche property transactions and who will ensure your new leases are drafted accurately and efficiently. Plus, if you are taking mortgages for your new leasehold properties, our  title split solicitors can arrange for your mortgages to be granted on the same day that your new leases are registered, so you can find buyers or tenants as quickly as possible. 

Share of Freehold Property

Share of freehold property is becoming increasingly popular as it allows leaseholder more control over their property’s management – owning a share of the freehold grants leaseholders more control over the maintenance of their building, plus the option to extend their lease by up to 999 years for little to no premium. However, it can be difficult to find a solicitor with the right experience and knowledge to handle your share of freehold matters. Our leasehold solicitors can act on your behalf in a wide range of circumstances including share of freehold conveyancing, extending your share of freehold lease and selling your share of freehold property. With up-to-date knowledge and a proactive approach, you can be confident when instructing us to deal with this niche area of property law.

Section 5 Notices and Right of First Refusal

Section 5 notices are served by a freeholder to their leaseholders to notify them of the freeholder’s intention to sell the freehold and their acknowledgement of the leaseholders’ right of first refusal. If the leaseholders wish to accept the freeholder’s offer, they will need to serve a section 6 notice onto the freeholder and negotiate the price of the freehold and the terms on which it will be sold. When the sale completes, the leaseholders who took part in the purchase will own both their individual leasehold properties as well as a share in the property’s freehold. If you’re a leaseholder, you don’t need to wait for the freeholder to decide to sell their freehold themselves – if at least half of your fellow leaseholders are willing to purchase the freehold with you, you can force the freeholder to sell their freehold to you through a process called Collective Enfranchisement. Speak to our leasehold solicitors today about buying or selling your property’s freehold – whether you’re a freeholder or a leaseholder, we can provide an efficient and straightforward service without sacrificing quality even for more complex matters.

Lease Extension

Ensuring your lease has at least 80 years remaining on it is important to avoid difficulty when selling or mortgaging your property later. If your lease falls below 80 years, extending it will become more expensive as “marriage value” is then incurred – and it only gets more expensive as the lease gets shorter. You may want to try our lease extension calculator which provides and estimated cost of a lease extension. Save yourself the trouble later by booking an appointment with our lease extension solicitors today. Our lease extension solicitors work proactively with you in order to complete your lease extension in as little time as possible. Thinking of selling your property instead? Talk to our leasehold solicitors about selling your short lease property.

Changing the Terms of your Lease

To make changes to your lease, you will usually need a deed of variation – for an example, if there’s a mistake in your lease or if you want to remove a restrictive covenant whichprevents you from making developments you want to make. In order to make improvements to your property that would otherwise be prohibited by your lease, you may need both a deed of variation and a licence for alterations – this is a document which proves that you sought permission from your landlord before making any improvements to your property. Without a licence for alterations, a lender may refuse to lend on your property. Whatever your situation is, our leasehold solicitors can explain how to change your lease terms and advise you of the legal ramifications of any proposed changes. Once you have decided what changes you would like to have made to your lease, our leasehold team will draft any documents you need and ensure the changes are registered efficiently at the Land Registry.

Leasehold Disputes

Is your freeholder demanding unfair service charges? Perhaps you are a freeholder yourself and your lessee is not following their leasehold covenants. No matter the situation, we can assist you where your lessee is not paying service charges or if you feel that your lessee is not following their leasehold covenant. Our leasehold solicitors can advise you on your legal position at the start of your lease. We will keep you updated throughout the process and give you advice as your leasehold dispute progresses, offering pragmatic advice and support from start to finish. We will always try to settle matters without a hearing where possible, but in the event that a hearing is inevitable, our knowledgeable leasehold solicitors can represent you at a first-tier property tribunal. With over 30 years of shared experience in handling leasehold disputes, our leasehold solicitors have a reputation for reliably achieving a favourable outcome whenever matters do go to tribunal.