Jane (my partner) and I may need to let out our Frodsham garden flat for a while due to a new job. We used a Frodsham conveyancing firm in 2001 but they have since shut and we did not have the foresight to seek any guidance as to whether the lease prohibits the subletting of the flat. How do we find out?

Notwithstanding that your previous Frodsham conveyancing solicitor is not available you can review your lease to see if you are permitted to let out the apartment. The accepted inference is that if the lease is non-specific, subletting is allowed. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you must seek permission from your landlord or some other party in advance of subletting. This means that you cannot sublet without first obtaining permission. Such consent must not not be unreasonably refused ore delayed. If your lease does not allow you to sublet you should ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

I’m about to sell my garden flat in Frodsham.Conveyancing has not commenced but I have just received a half-yearly service charge invoice – Do I pay up?

The sensible thing to do is discharge 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 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 couple of flats in Frodsham which have about fifty years remaining on the leases. Do I need to be concerned?

There are plenty of short leases in Frodsham. The lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the premises for a prescribed time frame. As a lease gets shorter the saleability of the lease reduces and results in it becoming more costly to extend the lease. For this reason it is generally wise to increase the term of the lease. It is often difficult to sell a property with a short lease as mortgage companies may be unwilling to lend money on properties of this type. Lease enfranchisement can be a difficult process. We advise that you seek professional assistance from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this field

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Frodsham from the perspective of saving time on the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Frodsham can be bypassed if you appoint lawyers as soon as you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold information needed by the purchasers’ representatives.
• The majority freeholders or managing agents in Frodsham levy fees for providing management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should discover the actual amount of the charges. The management information can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most frequent cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in Frodsham.
• Some Frodsham leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, it would be prudent to notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is financially capable of paying 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 service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their solicitors.
• If you have the benefit of shareholding in the freehold, you should ensure that you hold the original share document. Organising a replacement share certificate can be a time consuming process and frustrates many a Frodsham conveyancing transaction. Where a reissued share certificate is needed, do contact the company officers or managing agents (if applicable) for this at the earliest opportunity.
• You may think that you are aware of the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be wise to double-check via your solicitors. A purchaser's conveyancer will be unlikely to recommend their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the remaining number of years is under 80 years. In the circumstances it is important at an as soon as possible that you consider whether the lease term for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

Are there frequently found problems that you see in leases for Frodsham properties?

Leasehold conveyancing in Frodsham is not unique. Most leases is drafted differently and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain sections are missing. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• A provision to repair to or maintain elements of the premises
• A duty to insure the building
• 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

A defective lease will likely cause problems when trying to sell a property as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Nationwide Building Society, Barnsley Building Society, and TSB all have very detailed conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is problematic they may refuse to grant the mortgage, obliging the buyer to withdraw.

I am the registered owner of a leasehold flat in Frodsham, conveyancing formalities finalised in 1997. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Comparable flats in Frodsham with a long lease are worth £188,000. The ground rent is £60 invoiced annually. The lease runs out on 21st October 2101

With only 75 years left to run the likely cost is going to range between £9,500 and £11,000 plus costs.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to supply a more accurate figure without more detailed investigations. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be additional issues that need to be taken into account and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action based on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.