My husband and I may need to sub-let our Chatteris garden flat for a while due to a career opportunity. We used a Chatteris conveyancing practice in 2002 but they have since shut and we did not think at the time seek any guidance as to whether the lease permits subletting. How do we find out?

Notwithstanding that your last Chatteris conveyancing lawyer is not around you can review your lease to see if it allows you to sublet the apartment. The accepted inference is that if the deeds are silent, subletting is permitted. There may be a precondition that you need to seek consent via your landlord or other appropriate person prior to subletting. This means you not allowed to sublet without prior consent. Such consent must not not be unreasonably refused ore delayed. If your lease does not allow you to sublet you should ask your landlord for their consent.

I have recently realised that I have 72 years unexpired on my flat in Chatteris. I need to get lease extension but my freeholder is absent. What are my options?

If you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be extended by the Court. You will be obliged to prove that you or your lawyers have used your best endeavours to locate the freeholder. For most situations a specialist may be helpful to carry out a search and prepare a report to be used as evidence that the freeholder can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a property lawyer both on proving the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Chatteris.

Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my 2 bed flat in Chatteris.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just had a quarterly maintenance charge demand – Do I pay up?

The sensible thing to do is pay the service charge 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 managing agents will not acknowledge the buyer until 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. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

I today plan to offer on a house that appears to meet my requirements, at a reasonable price which is making it more attractive. I have since discovered that the title is leasehold as opposed to freehold. I would have thought that there are issues buying a house with a leasehold title in Chatteris. Conveyancing lawyers have are soon to be instructed. Will my lawyers set out the risks of buying a leasehold house in Chatteris ?

Most houses in Chatteris are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can help the conveyancing process. it is apparent that you are buying in Chatteris so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Chatteris conveyancing practitioner and be sure that they have experience in transacting on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. As a leaseholder you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions for example obtaining the landlord’spermission to conduct alterations. It may be necessary to pay a maintenance charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the property is part of an estate. Your solicitor will report to you on the legal implications.

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

Leasehold conveyancing in Chatteris is not unique. All leases are individual and drafting errors can sometimes mean that certain clauses are erroneous. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• A provision to repair to or maintain elements of the property
• Insurance obligations
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

You could encounter difficulties when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Nationwide Building Society, The Royal Bank of Scotland, and Bank of Ireland all have very detailed requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is defective they may refuse to provide security, forcing the purchaser to pull out.

I am the registered owner of a leasehold flat in Chatteris, conveyancing having been completed 7 years ago. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Comparable flats in Chatteris with over 90 years remaining are worth £268,000. The ground rent is £55 levied per year. The lease finishes on 21st October 2081

With only 56 years remaining on your lease the likely cost is going to be between £28,500 and £33,000 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to advice on the actual costs in the absence of comprehensive due diligence. Do not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be additional issues that need to be considered and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward based on this information without first getting professional advice.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Chatteris