Harry (my fiance) and I may need to rent out our Gorton 1st floor flat temporarily due to a career opportunity. We used a Gorton conveyancing firm in 2003 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?

The lease governs the relationship between the landlord and you the flat owner; in particular, it will say if subletting is banned, or permitted but only subject to certain conditions. The rule is that if the lease contains no specific ban or restriction, subletting is allowed. The majority of leases in Gorton do not prevent subletting altogether – such a clause would undoubtedly devalue the flat. Instead, there is usually a basic requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly supplying a duplicate of the sublease.

I have recently realised that I have Fifty years remaining on my flat in Gorton. I now wish to extend my lease but my landlord is absent. What should I do?

On the basis that 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 lengthened by the magistrate. However, you will be required to prove that you have made all reasonable attempts to track down the landlord. On the whole an enquiry agent may be helpful to conduct investigations and to produce an expert document which can be used as proof that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer in relation to devolving into the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court covering Gorton.

Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my basement flat in Gorton.Conveyancing has not commenced but I have just had a yearly maintenance charge invoice – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

It best that you 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 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.

What advice can you give us when it comes to appointing a Gorton conveyancing firm to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

If you are instructing a solicitor for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Gorton conveyancing practice) it is most important that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We suggested that you make enquires with two or three firms including non Gorton 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 useful:

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

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Gorton with the aim of expediting the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Gorton can be reduced if you instruct lawyers the minute your agents start advertising the property and ask them to collate the leasehold information needed by the buyers solicitors.
• Many freeholders or Management Companies in Gorton levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should find out the actual amount of the charges. The management information sought as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most common cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in Gorton.
• Some Gorton leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this is the case, it would be prudent to notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand financial (bank) and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are able to meet the yearly 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 are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should ensure that you have the original share document. Obtaining a new share certificate can be a time consuming process and delays many a Gorton conveyancing transaction. If a new share certificate is needed, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (if relevant) for this at the earliest opportunity.
• You may think that you are aware of the number of years remaining on your lease but you should verify this via your solicitors. A purchaser's conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to where the lease term is below 75 years. In the circumstances it is important at an as soon as possible that you identify whether the lease for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

Gorton Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Questions you should ask before buying

Is the freehold reversion owned collectively by the leaseholders?