My husband and I may need to rent out our Boscombe ground floor flat for a while due to taking a sabbatical. We used a Boscombe conveyancing practice in 2002 but they have closed and we did not have the foresight to seek any advice as to whether the lease permits subletting. How do we find out?

A lease dictates the relationship between the landlord and you the flat owner; specifically, it will set out if subletting is prohibited, or permitted but only subject to certain conditions. The accepted inference is that if the lease contains no specific ban or restriction, subletting is permitted. Most leases in Boscombe do not contain subletting altogether – such a provision would undoubtedly devalue the flat. In most cases there is a basic requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly supplying a copy of the sublease.

There are only Fifty years remaining on my lease in Boscombe. I need to extend my lease but my freeholder is missing. What options are available to me?

On the basis that you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be extended by the Court. You will be obliged to prove that you have done all that could be expected to track down the freeholder. For most situations an enquiry agent should be helpful to carry out a search and prepare a report to be used as proof that the landlord is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a solicitor both on investigating the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Boscombe.

I've found a house that appears to meet my requirements, at a great figure which is making it more attractive. I have just discovered that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are particular concerns purchasing a leasehold house in Boscombe. Conveyancing solicitors have are about to be instructed. Will my lawyers set out the risks of buying a leasehold house in Boscombe ?

Most houses in Boscombe are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area can assist with the conveyancing process. We note that you are purchasing in Boscombe so you should seriously consider looking for a Boscombe conveyancing solicitor and check that they have experience in transacting on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the unexpired lease term. As a tenant you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want with the house. The lease comes with conditions such as requiring the landlord’sconsent to carry out changes to the property. You may also be required to pay a maintenance charge towards the maintenance of the communal areas where the house is part of an estate. Your conveyancer should advise you fully on all the issues.

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Boscombe with the intention of saving time on the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Boscombe can be avoided if you get in touch lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the purchasers’ solicitors.
• Many landlords or managing agents in Boscombe levy fees for providing management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the actual amount of the charges. The management information can be applied for as soon as you have a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The typical amount of time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most common cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in Boscombe.
• Some Boscombe leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand financial (bank) and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are able to meet the annual 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 actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their lawyers.
• If you have had any disputes with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are settled before the property is marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where there is an ongoing dispute. You may need to swallow your pride and discharge any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to reveal the dispute as over rather than unresolved.
• If you have the benefit of shareholding in the freehold, you should ensure that you have the original share certificate. Organising a replacement share certificate can be a lengthy process and slows down many a Boscombe home move. Where a reissued share certificate is required, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (if relevant) for this at the earliest opportunity.

Are there common deficiencies that you encounter in leases for Boscombe properties?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Boscombe. Most leases is drafted differently and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain sections are erroneous. 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

You could have a problem when selling your property if you have a defective lease as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Yorkshire Building Society, Skipton Building Society, and Aldermore 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 defective they may refuse to provide security, obliging the buyer to pull out.

I purchased a 1st floor flat in Boscombe, conveyancing formalities finalised 9 years ago. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Corresponding flats in Boscombe with an extended lease are worth £203,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 charged once a year. The lease expires on 21st October 2083

You have 57 years left to run the likely cost is going to be between £24,700 and £28,600 as well as legals.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to supply the actual costs in the absence of comprehensive investigations. Do not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt additional concerns that need to be taken into account and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action based on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.