Helen (my wife) and I may need to sub-let our Audlem 1st floor flat temporarily due to taking a sabbatical. We used a Audlem conveyancing firm in 2004 but they have closed and we did not have the foresight to get any guidance as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?

Even though your previous Audlem conveyancing solicitor is not around you can check your lease to see if you are permitted to let out the property. The rule is that if the lease is non-specific, subletting is allowed. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you must obtain consent from your landlord or some other party prior to subletting. The net result is you not allowed to sublet in the absence of prior consent. The consent is not allowed to be unreasonably turned down. If the lease does not allow you to sublet you will need to ask your landlord for their consent.

Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my basement apartment in Audlem.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just received a quarterly maintenance charge demand – what should I do?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should discharge the service charge as normal because all ground rent and service charges will be apportioned on completion, so you will be reimbursed by the buyer for the period running from after the completion date to the next payment date. Most management companies will not acknowledge the buyer until the service charges have been paid and are up to date so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

Last month I purchased a leasehold property in Audlem. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before my ownership?

Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. Strange as it may seem, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. It is an essential part of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to ensure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.

If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).

I work for a long established estate agent office in Audlem where we see a few flat sales derailed as a result of short leases. I have been given conflicting advice from local Audlem conveyancing solicitors. Can you clarify whether the seller of a flat can initiate the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the buyer need not have to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

Alternatively, it may be possible to agree the lease extension with the freeholder either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the buyer.

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Audlem with the intention of speeding up the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Audlem can be avoided where you instruct lawyers the minute your agents start marketing the property and request that they start to collate the leasehold documentation which will be required by the purchasers’ conveyancers.
• The majority freeholders or Management Companies in Audlem charge for supplying management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the actual amount of the charges. The management information sought on or before finding a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The typical amount of time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most common cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in Audlem.

I invested in buying a split level flat in Audlem, conveyancing was carried out in 2010. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Equivalent properties in Audlem with over 90 years remaining are worth £257,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £65 per annum. The lease expires on 21st October 2092

With 69 years remaining on your lease the likely cost is going to span between £12,400 and £14,200 plus costs.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure without more comprehensive investigations. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt other concerns that need to be considered and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward based on this information before getting professional advice.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Audlem