Noted Lease

hello, 

me and my partner are buying a house and have been told there is a noted lease from when the house was owned by the coal board that needs to be removed before we proceed. hopefully this application has now been made today by the sellers solicitors, if not it should be done by tomorrow and expedited. 

the sellers solicitors however have already stated that they think the application will be rejected as there is not enough evidence to remove it as no one can find any documents relating to the lease, the sellers solicitors requested a lease for the adjoining house that would have also been owned by the coal board and this did not have one. 

please can you advise if you can see anything relating to the house that might cause the application to be rejected and please advise what would happen if the case is rejected as we cannot move forward with contracts until this is done. 

the title no is K484498

many thanks for your help 
Amy 

Hello Amy - the application was submitted today so it needs to be processed to decide whether it is sufficient to cancel the noted lease. As you are already aware everything depends on the supporting evidence submitted to show that the noted lease no longer affects.
It's less about the house and all about what evidence they provide to show that the lease has come to an end/been determined/no longer effects and as you state they haven't really supplied anything concrete it seems to prove that in law.
They should now apply to expedite it as there is an onward purchase so I shall flag with colleagues to ensure that happens. Expedition generally means it is considered asap and within 2 weeks but everything then hinges on it being in order.
Our PG 26 explains how a lease can be determined but it doesn't read as if the conveyancer has applied the guidance. But until their application is considered we can't be definitive re whether it is in order or not.
In the interim, and whilst you wait to find out, I would suggest discussing what options exist with your own solicitor for example an indemnity policy although I suspect that has already been discussed if they have advised you that you cannot complete

Hello, 

the case should have been expedited, is this not the case?

if the case is rejected can we appeal? what further evidence do they need to provide in order for the application to be considered

can you tell me if land registry have a copy of the lease associated with the property before i pay the fee to request a copy if they do not have one. 

if we moved forward with an indemnity clause could me and my partner apply to have it removed once we are in possession of the house ?

Hello Amy - the process is lodge first and then request expedition. They may have been in the course of doing the second part but I have pre-empted that, in light of your post, and expedited it for them
There's no appeal process if it's rejected/cancelled as either it;s sufficient or it's not - the linked PG explains what sort of supporting evidence is needed
We don't have a copy as the entry states
Indemnity is to cover the risk of the tenant coming forward and seeking to enforce their lease. Having such a policy doesn't then enable you to cancel the noted lease. It just mitigates the risk.
You do need to be speaking to your conveyancer re what options yo0u have here. If an indemnity policy is an option then you don't want to be investigating other options as the more you dig the greater the risk and the less likely you are to get a policy.

hello, 

thank you for your reply, if land registry do not have a copy of the lease then there is not enough evidence to send with the application anyway? what would qualify as evidence?

if there is no copy of the lease would this not make it easier to remove it from the title ?

there has been 2 previous sales of the house and this has not been addressed before what could be the cause?

amy

Amy - whatever evidence the owners have that the leasehold interest no longer exists, has been forfeited, surrendered or as otherwise. The PG 26 explains how a lease might be determined as there are numerous ways that it could happen.
The lease will have been noted on registration based on the deeds/documents provided. So it existed but no copy was ever provided. Just because the actual lease was not provided does not mean that it has come to an end or been determined as explained.
I suspect, but you'd have to ask the previous owners/their conveyancers that either they obtained an indemnity policy or, and perhaps more likely, their mortgage product did not have the risk calculation that your's now has. One mortgage provider may not flag the risk and proceed whilst another may not.
May I ask what your conveyancer has advised you re the situation? This would very much be something they would normally be addressing with the seller's conveyancer and then explaining to you as their client

Hello

Unfortunately we have not been told much our solicitors only that they have requested the lease be removed to protect us before we move forward. 

Our solicitors were the ones who did not want an indemnity clause added. 

I believe it was I am sold the auction service selling the property or the sellers solicitors who were made aware of the notes lease rather than our mortgage 

Many thanks and understood - just interested to see what legal advice you are getting s what I have advised stretches into legal advice and something the conveyancers should be covering for you and the seller

Hello. Do you know if there has been any movement on the case, or know when we could expect an outcome on the application 

Hello Amy - we contacted the conveyancer on the 11th and await their response. If they respond positively then things can hopefully be progressed quickly

Can I ask why the conveyancers were contacted? What information are you awaiting for 

Amy - they were asked to provide additional information to enable us to move forward with their application. You should contact them direct to confirm and to clarify the details as appropriate
All I can usefully say here is that it is not a complex request so hopefully one they can respond to quickly

Hello 

Many thanks for your help  you’ve been the most helpful person I have spoken too since our offer was accepted  

I asked I am sold to make contact with the sellers Solicotors today to ensure they are prompt with a response as they like to drag things out. Have you heard anything back today? 
 

Amy 

Hello Amy - we received a reply late yesterday so that will be referred back to the casework team for consideration. 
I'll keep an eye on it and post when that's happened

Hello

i have just had a call from I am sold saying that the application was successful and the leasehold has been removed. Can you confirm this please ?

Hello Amy - that is correct. The application was completed and the register updated about half an hour ago. You beat me to it re your post - apologies

Hello 

Thank you so much for all of your help Adam. 

Amy