Clear, relevant schedules are the key to purchaser-friendly leases

As a housebuilder, you have planned and built your property, marketed it and are now all set for a sale – you just need to draw up a lease.

However, a badly drawn lease can put off buyers concerned about unexpected charges and costs. You need an experienced managing agent to support you through the process.

Here, Paul Mather, Finance Director at Block Management UK Ltd, looks into the potential pitfalls when writing a lease, with some top tips on how to get it right.

A bad lease can be a barrier to buying

No matter how wonderful the property you’re selling, a poorly written lease can act as an obstacle to making a sale.

Potential buyers can get caught off-guard when faced with unexpected service charges and ongoing costs to maintain the property.

A well-written and comprehensive lease can set these details in stone, while explaining exactly where the money goes.

Buyers hate surprises - and a clear and concise lease can make all the difference in putting their minds at rest.

A fair anticipation of the costs

Accurate costing and budgeting for the future management of an estate requires experience and attention to the details.

Whether the charges are calculated on a site basis or equal split, it is a false economy to underplay potential costs.

The advantage of clarity is that purchasers understand what it is they are getting for their money right from the start.

What they get for their money

An effective lease will clarify exactly the value a buyer will get from any charges that need to be collected.

Is there a ground floor flat that will have to contribute to lift maintenance? Will drainage and pumping stations only be used by certain properties?

These are some of the common examples of details that need to be set out in the lease stage – so buyers know upfront the details of their potential costs.

Break down services into relevant schedules

A good lease must be an accurate representation of how the new community ought to operate when it comes to ongoing costs, with relevant schedules of how these costs will work.

All issues must be addressed in a transparent way at the beginning of the sales process, so the sales team understand exactly what the lease includes.

An effective managing agent, such as Block Management UK Ltd, knows how to remove obstacles to buying with a concise and transparent lease.

It goes to improve purchaser confidence, as well as covering the housebuilder for several years down the line.