I would like to sublet my leasehold flat in Bedwas. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask him. Is permission from the freeholder required?

Notwithstanding that your last Bedwas conveyancing lawyer is not available you can check your lease to check if it allows you to sublet the property. The accepted inference is that if the lease is silent, subletting is permitted. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you must seek consent from your landlord or some other party in advance of subletting. This means you not allowed to sublet in the absence of first obtaining permission. The consent is not allowed to be unreasonably refused ore delayed. If the lease does not allow you to sublet you should ask your landlord for their consent.

I am hoping to sign contracts shortly on a garden flat in Bedwas. Conveyancing solicitors inform me that they will have a report out to me next week. What should I be looking out for?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Bedwas should include some of the following:

• You need to be told what constitutes a Nuisance in the lease

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a couple of flats in Bedwas which have about fifty years unexpired on the lease term. Will this present a problem?

There are no two ways about it. A leasehold flat in Bedwas is a wasting asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The nearer the lease gets to its expiry date, the more it reduces the marketability of the premises. The majority of purchasers and mortgage companies, leases with under eighty 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 premises 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 Bedwas 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 They may agree to a smaller lump sum and an increase in the ground rent, but to shorter extension terms in return. 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 am a negotiator for a long established estate agent office in Bedwas where we have experienced a number of flat sales put at risk due to short leases. I have received contradictory information from local Bedwas conveyancing firms. Can you confirm whether the vendor of a flat can initiate the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the proposed purchaser need not have to wait 2 years for a lease extension. 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 extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord 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.

When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Bedwas what are the most common lease problems?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Bedwas. Most leases are individual and drafting errors can sometimes mean that certain provisions are erroneous. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain elements of the property
• 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. Halifax, Chelsea Building Society, and Platform Home Loans Ltd all have very detailed conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is problematic they may refuse to grant the mortgage, obliging the purchaser to pull out.

I purchased a garden flat in Bedwas, conveyancing having been completed 5 years ago. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Equivalent properties in Bedwas with a long lease are worth £250,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £45 yearly. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2100

With 76 years remaining on your lease we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £11,400 and £13,200 plus costs.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to supply a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed investigations. Do 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 clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action based on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Bedwas