My partner and I may need to sub-let our Dunstable basement flat for a while due to a new job. We instructed a Dunstable conveyancing firm in 2003 but they have since shut and we did not think at the time get any guidance as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?

Some leases for properties in Dunstable 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 review 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 have recently realised that I have Seventy years left on my flat in Dunstable. I now wish to extend my lease but my landlord is absent. What should I do?

If you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be extended by the Court. You will be obliged to prove that you or your lawyers have done all that could be expected to find the freeholder. In some cases an enquiry agent would be useful to try and locate and prepare an expert document to be accepted by the court as evidence that the freeholder can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer in relation to proving the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing Dunstable.

Due to complete next month on a garden flat in Dunstable. Conveyancing solicitors assured me that they are sending me a report next week. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Dunstable should include some of the following:

• Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, landlord

I have just appointed agents to market my ground floor flat in Dunstable.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just received a yearly service charge invoice – what should I do?

It best that you 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. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a two apartments in Dunstable which have about 50 years remaining on the lease term. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

There is no doubt about it. A leasehold apartment in Dunstable is a deteriorating asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The nearer the lease gets to its expiry date, the more it reduces the marketability of the premises. For most buyers and lenders, leases with under 75 years become less and less attractive. On a more upbeat 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 premises 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 Dunstable 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 They may agree to a smaller lump sum and an increase in the ground rent, but to shorter extension terms in return. 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.

Dunstable Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Sample of Queries Prior to Purchasing

Most Dunstable leasehold flats will incur a service bill for the upkeep of the block levied on behalf of the management company. If you buy the flat you will have to pay this amount, normally periodically during the year. This may be anything from two or three hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for buildings with lifts and large common areas. In all probability there will be a ground rent to be met annual, this is usually not a exorbitant amount, say approximately £25-£75 but you should to check as sometimes it could be many hundreds of pounds. The answer will be helpful as a) areas may cause problems in the building as the communal areas may start to deteriorate if maintenance are not paid for b) if the leaseholders have an issue with the running of the building you will need to know about it Is the freehold owned collectively by the leaseholders?

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Dunstable