I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Bournemouth. Before I set the wheels in motion I require certainty as to the number of years remaining on the lease.

Assuming the lease is recorded at the land registry - and almost all are in Bournemouth - then the leasehold title will always include the short particulars 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.

My wife and I may need to let out our Bournemouth garden flat for a while due to a new job. We used a Bournemouth conveyancing firm in 2003 but they have since shut 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 Bournemouth conveyancing lawyer is not available you can review your lease to check if you are permitted to let out the property. The accepted inference is that if the deeds are silent, subletting is allowed. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you need to obtain consent via your landlord or some other party before subletting. This means that you cannot sublet in the absence of prior permission. The consent is not allowed to be unreasonably withheld. If the lease does not allow you to sublet you will need to ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that seems to be perfect, at a great figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have since been informed that it's a leasehold as opposed to freehold. I am assuming that there are particular concerns buying a house with a leasehold title in Bournemouth. Conveyancing advisers have are about to be appointed. Will my lawyers set out the implications of buying a leasehold house in Bournemouth ?

Most houses in Bournemouth are freehold and not leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local solicitor used to dealing with such properties who can help the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are purchasing in Bournemouth so you should seriously consider looking for a Bournemouth conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they have experience in advising on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the number of years remaining. As a leaseholder you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions such as requiring the landlord’sconsent to carry out changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a contribution towards the upkeep of the communal areas where the property is located on an estate. Your solicitor should advise you fully on all the issues.

I am employed by a busy estate agent office in Bournemouth where we have witnessed a few leasehold sales put at risk due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Bournemouth conveyancing firms. Can you clarify whether the owner of a flat can start the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

As long as 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 proposed purchaser can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done prior to, or simultaneously with completion of the sale.

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 purchaser.

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Bournemouth from the perspective of expediting the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Bournemouth can be reduced if you get in touch lawyers as soon as you market your property and request that they start to collate the leasehold information needed by the purchasers’ lawyers.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s approval? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Bournemouth state that internal structural alterations or laying down wooden flooring require a licence from the Landlord consenting to such alterations. Where you fail to have the paperwork to hand do not contact the landlord without contacting your lawyer before hand.
• A minority of Bournemouth leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, you should place the estate agents on notice 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 actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their solicitors.
• If you have had conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are settled before the property is marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be nervous about purchasing a property where a dispute is unresolved. You will have to accept that you will have to discharge any arrears of service charge or resolve 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 particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to present the dispute as historic rather than unresolved.
• You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but it would be wise to verify this via your solicitors. A buyer’s lawyer will not be happy to advise their client to to exchange contracts if the lease term is less than 75 years. In the circumstances it is 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 home on the market for sale.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Bournemouth - Sample of Questions you should ask Prior to buying

What is the length of the lease?