Frank (my husband) and I may need to let out our Burnham ground floor flat temporarily due to a career opportunity. We used a Burnham conveyancing practice in 2001 but they have since shut and we did not think at the time get any advice as to whether the lease permits subletting. How do we find out?

A lease dictates relations between the freeholder and you the flat owner; specifically, it will indicate if subletting is banned, or permitted but only subject to certain caveats. The accepted inference is that if the lease contains no expres ban or restriction, subletting is permitted. Most leases in Burnham do not prevent an absolute prevention of subletting – such a clause would undoubtedly devalue the flat. In most cases there is simply a requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly supplying a duplicate of the tenancy agreement.

Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my basement flat in Burnham.Conveyancing has not commenced but I have just received a yearly maintenance charge demand – Do I pay up?

The sensible thing to do is clear the invoice as normal because all ground rent and service charges will be apportioned on completion, so you will be reimbursed by the buyer for the period running from after the completion date to the next payment date. Most management companies will not acknowledge the buyer unless the service charges have been paid and are up to date so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

I am looking at a two flats in Burnham which have in the region of 50 years remaining on the leases. Do I need to be concerned?

There is no doubt about it. A leasehold apartment in Burnham is a deteriorating asset as a result of the shortening lease. The nearer the lease gets to its expiry date, the more it adversely affects the marketability of the property. For most buyers and banks, leases with under 75 years become less and less attractive. On a more positive note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the premises 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 property 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 Burnham conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. A more straightforward and quicker method of extending would be to contact your landlord directly and sound him out on the prospect of extending 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.

Can you offer any advice when it comes to choosing a Burnham conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a property lawyer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Burnham conveyancing practice) it is most important that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We suggested that you speak with two or three firms including non Burnham conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions could be of use:

• How familiar is the firm with lease extension legislation?
• What are the costs for lease extension conveyancing?

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Burnham with the aim of expediting the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Burnham can be avoided if you instruct lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and ask them to collate the leasehold information needed by the buyers solicitors.
• Many landlords or managing agents in Burnham charge for supplying management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should discover the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack can be applied for on or before finding 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 delay in leasehold conveyancing in Burnham.
• A minority of Burnham leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this is the case, 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 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 purchasers or their lawyers.
• If there is a history of conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are resolved before the property is put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where there is a current dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to pay any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to reveal the dispute as over as opposed to unsettled.
• If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should ensure that you have the original share certificate. Organising a duplicate share certificate can be a lengthy formality and delays many a Burnham conveyancing transaction. Where a reissued share certificate is necessary, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (if relevant) for this at the earliest opportunity.

Burnham Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Queries before buying

The majority of Burnham leasehold properties will be liable to pay a service bill for maintenance of the block levied by the landlord. If you purchase the property you will have to pay this contribution, usually periodically accross the year. This may vary from two or three hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for large purpose-built blocks. In all probability there will be a ground rent for you to pay annual, this is usually not a significant figure, say around £50-£100 but you need to check it because on occasion it can be many hundreds of pounds.