Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Alston. Before I get started I require certainty as to the unexpired term of the lease.

If the lease is registered - and almost all are in Alston - then the leasehold title will always include the basic details of the lease, namely the date; the term; and the original parties. From a conveyancing perspective such details then enable any prospective buyer and lender to confirm that any lease they are looking at is the one relevant to that title.For any other purpose, such as confirming how long the term was granted for and calculating what is left, then the register should be sufficient on it's own.

Harry (my fiance) and I may need to sub-let our Alston ground floor flat temporarily due to a new job. We instructed a Alston conveyancing firm in 2003 but they have closed and we did not have the foresight to get any advice as to whether the lease permits subletting. How do we find out?

Even though your last Alston conveyancing solicitor is not around you can review your lease to check if you are permitted to let out the apartment. The accepted inference is that if the lease is silent, subletting is allowed. There may be a precondition that you need to obtain consent via your landlord or some other party in advance of subletting. The net result is that you cannot sublet in the absence of first obtaining permission. The consent must not not be unreasonably refused ore delayed. If the lease prohibits you from letting out the property you should ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

There are only Fifty years left on my flat in Alston. I am keen to extend my lease but my landlord is absent. What should I do?

If you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be extended by the Court. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you have done all that could be expected to track down the lessor. On the whole a specialist would be useful to carry out a search and to produce a report to be used as proof that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a solicitor both on investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court covering Alston.

Back In 2008, I bought a leasehold house in Alston. Conveyancing and Bank of Scotland mortgage organised. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1993. The conveyancing practitioner in Alston who previously acted has long since retired.What should I do?

The first thing you should do is make enquiries of the Land Registry to make sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is indeed the new freeholder. There is no need to instruct a Alston conveyancing solicitor to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for a few pound. You should note that regardless, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

Are there common deficiencies that you see in leases for Alston properties?

Leasehold conveyancing in Alston is not unique. All leases is drafted differently and drafting errors can result in certain clauses are missing. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the premises
• Insurance obligations
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

A defective lease will likely cause issues when trying to sell a property primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Accord Mortgages Ltd, Bank of Scotland, and Nottingham Building Society all have very detailed requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is problematic they may refuse to provide security, obliging the buyer to pull out.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Alston - Examples of Questions you should consider Prior to buying

Is there a share of the freehold? Is anyone aware of any major works on the horizon that could add a premium to the service costs? What is the the remaining lease term?

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Alston