I am intending to let out my leasehold apartment in Clarbeston Road. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask her. Do I need to ask my freeholder for their consent?

Notwithstanding that your previous Clarbeston Road conveyancing lawyer is no longer around you can review your lease to check if it allows you to sublet the apartment. The accepted inference is that if the lease is silent, subletting is allowed. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you need to obtain consent via your landlord or some other party prior to subletting. The net result is you not allowed to sublet in the absence of prior permission. The consent should not be unreasonably withheld. If your lease prohibits you from letting out the property you should 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 meet my requirements, at a reasonable price which is making it all the more appealing. I have since found out that the title is leasehold as opposed to freehold. I am assuming that there are particular concerns buying a leasehold house in Clarbeston Road. Conveyancing lawyers have are about to be instructed. Will my lawyers set out the implications of buying a leasehold house in Clarbeston Road ?

The majority of houses in Clarbeston Road are freehold rather than leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer used to dealing with such properties who can help the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are purchasing in Clarbeston Road in which case you should be shopping around for a Clarbeston Road conveyancing practitioner and check that they are used to dealing with leasehold houses. First you will need to check the unexpired lease term. As a leaseholder you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease comes with conditions for example requiring the landlord’sconsent to conduct alterations. You may also be required to pay a contribution towards the maintenance of the communal areas where the property is part of an estate. Your conveyancer will report to you on the legal implications.

I've recently bought a leasehold flat in Clarbeston Road. Do I have any liability for service charges relating to a period prior to my ownership?

Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. Strange as it may seem, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to be sure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.

If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).

I am employed by a busy estate agent office in Clarbeston Road where we see a number of leasehold sales put at risk due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received inconsistent advice from local Clarbeston Road conveyancing firms. Please can you confirm whether the seller of a flat can commence 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. This means that the proposed purchaser need not have to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or at the same time as 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 purchaser.

What advice can you give us when it comes to appointing a Clarbeston Road conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

When appointing a conveyancer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Clarbeston Road conveyancing firm) it is most important that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We recommend that you talk with two or three firms including non Clarbeston Road conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions could be of use:

• If the firm is not ALEP accredited then what is the reason?

Leasehold Conveyancing in Clarbeston Road - Examples of Questions you should consider Prior to Purchasing

What prohibitions are contained in the Clarbeston Road Lease? How many of the leaseholders are in arrears for their maintenance charge payments? Many Clarbeston Road leasehold flats will incur a service bill for the upkeep of the building levied by the landlord. Where you buy the property you will have to pay this charge, usually periodically throughout the year. This can be anything from two or three hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for blocks with lifts and large common grounds. In all probability there will be a rentcharge to be met yearly, this is usually not a significant figure, say around £25-£75 but you need to enquire it because occasionally it can be many hundreds of pounds.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Clarbeston Road