Helen (my wife) and I may need to rent out our Battle 1st floor flat temporarily due to taking a sabbatical. We instructed a Battle conveyancing firm in 2003 but they have since shut and we did not think at the time get any guidance as to whether the lease permits subletting. How do we find out?

Even though your previous Battle conveyancing lawyer is not available 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 are obliged to seek consent from your landlord or some other party prior to subletting. This means that you cannot sublet without first obtaining consent. The consent should not be unreasonably turned down. If your lease prohibits you from letting out the property you will need to ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

I am looking at a two apartments in Battle both have approximately 50 years left on the lease term. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

There is no doubt about it. A leasehold apartment in Battle is a deteriorating asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The closer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it adversely affects the salability of the property. The majority of purchasers and mortgage companies, leases with under 75 years become less and less marketable. On a more upbeat note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the property for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of a residence with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Battle conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. More often than not it is possible to negotiate informally with the freeholder to extend the lease You may find he or she is happy to negotiate informally and willing to consider your offer straight off, without having to involve anyone else. This will save you time and money and it could help you reach a lower price on the lease. You need to ensure that any new terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.

I've recently bought a leasehold flat in Battle. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to completion of my purchase?

In a situation 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. However, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element 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).

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Battle from the perspective of expediting the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Battle can be reduced if you instruct lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to collate the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers conveyancers.
• Many freeholders or Management Companies in Battle levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should find out the actual amount of the charges. The management pack sought as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. The typical amount of time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most frequent cause of frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Battle.

If you have carried out any alterations to the premises would they have required Landlord’s consent? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Battle leases often stipulate that internal structural changes or addition of wooden flooring calls for a licence issued by the Landlord acquiescing to such changes. Where you fail to have the consents to hand do not contact the landlord without checking with your solicitor first.

A minority of Battle leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are able to meet the yearly service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their lawyers.

You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be wise to double-check by asking your conveyancers. A purchaser's lawyer will not be happy to advise their client to to exchange contracts if the remaining number of years is below 80 years. It is therefore important at an as soon as possible that you consider whether the lease term for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

If all goes to plan we aim to complete the sale of our £125000 apartment in Battle next week. The landlords agents has quoted £336 for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and previous years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in Battle?

Battle conveyancing on leasehold apartments typically results in fees being levied by freeholders :

• Answering pre-contract questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Battle
• Copies of the building insurance and schedule
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your lawyer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Battle leasehold property is £350. For Battle conveyancing transactions it is customary for the seller to pay for these costs. The landlord or their agents are under no legal obligation to answer such questions most will be willing to do so - albeit often at exorbitant prices where the fees bear little relation to the work involved. Unfortunately there is no law that requires fixed charges for administrative tasks. Neither is there any legal time frame by which they are required to supply the information.

I invested in buying a 2 bed flat in Battle, conveyancing was carried out in 2009. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Corresponding properties in Battle with over 90 years remaining are worth £169,000. The ground rent is £60 yearly. The lease terminates on 21st October 2094

You have 71 years left to run we estimate the price of your lease extension to range between £10,500 and £12,000 as well as legals.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to provide the actual costs in the absence of detailed investigations. Do not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt other concerns that need to be considered and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward placing reliance on this information without first getting professional advice.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Battle