I want to sublet my leasehold flat in Coleford. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask him. Do I need to ask my freeholder for their consent?

A small minority of properties in Coleford do contain a provision to say that subletting is only permitted with prior consent from the landlord. The landlord cannot unreasonably withhold but, in such cases, they would need to see references. Experience dictates 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 permission.

I only have 72 years left on my flat in Coleford. I now wish to get lease extension but my freeholder is absent. What options are available to me?

If you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be extended by the Court. However, you will be required to prove that you have done all that could be expected to locate the freeholder. For most situations a specialist may be useful to try and locate and to produce a report which can be used as evidence that the freeholder can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a solicitor in relation to devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Coleford.

I work for a reputable estate agency in Coleford where we see a few flat sales put at risk as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received inconsistent advice from local Coleford conveyancing solicitors. Please can you confirm whether the vendor of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that the seller has owned the lease 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 buyer 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 needs to be completed prior to, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.

Alternatively, it may be possible to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord 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 finding a Coleford conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

If you are instructing a conveyancer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Coleford conveyancing firm) it is essential that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We suggested that you speak with several firms including non Coleford conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions could be of use:

• If the firm is not ALEP accredited then why not?
• Can they put you in touch with client in Coleford who can give a testimonial?

Completion in due on the disposal of our £ 475000 flat in Coleford next Thursday . The landlords agents has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and previous years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge such fees for a leasehold conveyance in Coleford?

Coleford conveyancing on leasehold apartments more often than not necessitates the purchaser’s conveyancer submitting questions for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is not legally bound to answer such questions most will be content to assist. They may invoice a reasonable administration fee for responding to enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average fee for the information that you are referring to is £350, in some transactions it is above £800. The administration charge required by the landlord must be sent together with a synopsis of entitlements and obligations in respect of administration fees, otherwise the invoice is technically not due. Reality however dictates that one has little option but to pay whatever is requested of you should you wish to exchange contracts with the buyer.

Coleford Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Questions you should ask before Purchasing

Does the lease have more than 82 years remaining? Please tell me if there are any major works anticipated that will likely add a premium to the maintenance costs? Where a Coleford lease has less than 80 years it will impact the salability of the flat. It is worth checking with your lender that they are willing to lend given the lease term. Leases with fewer than 80 years remaining means that you will probably have to extend the lease sooner rather than later and you need to have some idea of what this will be. Remember, in most cases you will need to own the property for two years in order to be eligible to exercise a lease extension.