I want to let out my leasehold flat in Great Sankey. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask her. Do I need to ask my freeholder for permission?

Even though your previous Great Sankey conveyancing solicitor is not available you can review your lease to check if it allows you to sublet the premises. The rule is that if the deeds are non-specific, subletting is allowed. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you are obliged to seek permission via your landlord or some other party in advance of subletting. The net result is you not allowed to sublet without prior consent. Such consent is not allowed to be unreasonably withheld. If the lease does not allow you to sublet you will need to ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only 62 years unexpired on my lease in Great Sankey. I need to extend my lease but my freeholder is can not be found. What should I do?

On the basis that you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for an order 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 done all that could be expected to track down the lessor. For most situations a specialist may be helpful to try and locate and prepare a report which can be accepted by the court as proof that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a conveyancer both on devolving into the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Great Sankey.

Expecting to exchange soon on a studio apartment in Great Sankey. Conveyancing solicitors assured me that they will have a report out to me on Monday. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

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

• Does the lease prevent you from letting out the flat, or working from home
• Ground rent - how much and when you need to pay, and also know whether this is subject to change
• An explanation as to the provision in the lease to pay service charges - with regard to both the building, and the more general rights a leaseholder has
• You should have a good understanding of the insurance provisions
• The landlord’s rights to access the flat you be made aware that your landlord has rights of access and I know how much notice s/he must provide.
• Responsibility for repairing the window frames

I have just appointed agents to market my ground floor apartment in Great Sankey.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just had a half-yearly maintenance charge demand – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

It best that you discharge 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. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

Can you offer any advice when it comes to finding a Great Sankey conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a property lawyer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Great Sankey 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 Great Sankey 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 helpful:

• What volume of lease extensions has the firm completed in Great Sankey in the last 12 months?
• What are the charges for lease extension work?

Great Sankey Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Queries Prior to buying

If a Great Sankey lease has fewer than 80 years it will affect the salability of the apartment. Check with your lender that they are content with remaining years on the lease. A short lease means that you will almost definitely have to extend the lease at some point and you need to have some idea of what this would cost. Remember, in most cases you will be be obliged to have been the owner of the premises for 24 months in order to be legally able to exercise a lease extension.