more on leaseholds

Because of experience in the past, where pubs changed hands – sometimes several times in quick succession – without repair work being done, so running down the estate, Enterprise Inns (for one pubco) now arranges for a schedule of outstanding repairs to be prepared, and usually requires the outgoing tenant to carry out those repairs before the change of ownership can proceed –...
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Leasehold pubs

Stage 10 in my overview of pub sale and purchase procedure: ” If the pub is leasehold, it is normal that the landlord’s consent to the transfer of the lease to the buyer is needed. Whatever timescale the buyer and seller have agreed, this is subject to the need to get “licence to assign” first. Usually, the procedure for this will have been started at stage 1, so that...
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Stages 8 and 9: Exchanging contracts

Once the contract wording is agreed, the buyer’s finances are in place, satisfactory search results have been received and satisfactory replies to enquiries have been given, the buyer and the seller cansign their copies of the contract and return them to their solicitors – in the buyer’s case with a deposit (usually 10% of the purchase price). This is the time to raise any...
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Stage 7: Money, money, money

While all the legal investigations are being dealt with, the buyer needs to get his or her finances in place, ready to – (a) pay a deposit (usually ten per cent of the purchase price) on exchange of contracts and (b) pay the rest of the purchase money, plus legal expenses, plus the stock value, on completion As exchange of contracts and completion often take place on the same day, the...
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Stage 6 – agreeing the contract terms

When the seller’s solicitor prepared the draft contract, it will have included the obvious terms (eg: price) and terms to protect the seller (eg: an indemnity by the buyer in respect of post-completion debts of the business), but not necessarily any terms to protect the buyer (eg: non-competition clauses by the seller). It is the buyer’s solicitor’s job to make sure the...
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Searches – what are they all about?

Lawyers often talk about “the searches”, but what do they mean? The main search is the “local search” – strictly, a search in the register of local land charges maintained by the local district or borough council (or unitary authority), combined with a range of enquiries raised with that council, all in relation to the property being searched against – not in...
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