Helen (my wife) and I may need to sub-let our Buckley basement flat for a while due to a new job. We used a Buckley conveyancing practice in 2004 but they have since shut and we did not think at the time get any advice as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?

A small minority of properties in Buckley do contain a provision to say that subletting is only allowed with permission. The landlord cannot unreasonably refuse but, in such cases, they would need to review references. Experience suggests that problems are usually caused by unsatisfactory tenants rather than owner-occupiers and for that reason you can expect the freeholder to take up the references and consider them carefully before granting consent.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold house in Buckley. Conveyancing and Norwich and Peterborough Building Society mortgage organised. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1994. The conveyancing solicitor in Buckley who acted for me is not around.What should I do?

First contact HMLR to make sure that this person is in fact the new freeholder. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Buckley conveyancing practitioner to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. You should note that in any event, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

I am looking at a two flats in Buckley both have about forty five years remaining on the lease term. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

A lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the premises for a period of time. As a lease gets shorter the saleability of the lease reduces and results in it becoming more expensive to acquire a lease extension. For this reason it is advisable to extend the lease term. It is often difficult to sell a property with a short lease because mortgage companies may be unwilling to lend money on properties of this type. Lease extension can be a difficult process. We recommend you get professional help from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this arena

I am employed by a busy estate agency in Buckley where we have experienced a few leasehold sales put at risk as a result of short leases. I have been given conflicting advice from local Buckley conveyancing firms. Can you confirm whether the vendor of a flat can instigate the lease extension process for the buyer?

Provided that the seller has been the owner 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. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser can avoid having 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 simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.

An alternative approach is 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.

Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on our sale of a £ 425000 apartment in Buckley next week. The freeholder has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and previous years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge an administration fee for a flat conveyance in Buckley?

Buckley conveyancing on leasehold flats often necessitates the purchaser’s conveyancer sending enquiries for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to address such questions the majority will be content to do so. They are at liberty levy a reasonable charge for responding to questions or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average costs for the information that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some cases it is in excess of £800. The administration charge required by the landlord must be accompanied by a summary of entitlements and obligations in relation to administration charges, otherwise the charge is not strictly payable. Reality however dictates that you have no option but to pay whatever is requested of you should you wish to sell the property.

I bought a ground floor flat in Buckley, conveyancing formalities finalised half a dozen years ago. Can you let me have an estimate of the premium that my landlord can legally expect in return for granting a renewal of my lease? Equivalent properties in Buckley with an extended lease are worth £184,000. The ground rent is £50 per annum. The lease runs out on 21st October 2105

With only 79 years remaining on your lease the likely cost is going to be between £10,500 and £12,000 as well as legals.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs without more comprehensive due diligence. You should not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be other concerns that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action based on this information without first getting professional advice.