Jane (my partner) and I may need to rent out our Gwaelod Y Garth garden flat for a while due to taking a sabbatical. We used a Gwaelod Y Garth conveyancing practice in 2003 but they have since shut and we did not think at the time get any guidance as to whether the lease prohibits the subletting of the flat. How do we find out?

Notwithstanding that your previous Gwaelod Y Garth conveyancing solicitor is not available you can check your lease to see if it allows you to sublet the apartment. The rule is that if the lease is non-specific, subletting is permitted. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you must obtain permission via your landlord or some other party in advance of subletting. This means that you cannot sublet in the absence of first obtaining permission. The consent is not allowed to be unreasonably refused ore delayed. If your lease does not allow you to sublet you will need to ask your landlord for their consent.

Expecting to complete next month on a leasehold property in Gwaelod Y Garth. Conveyancing lawyers inform me that they will have a report out to me within the next couple of days. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

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

• You should be sent a copy of the lease

Defining your rights in respect of common areas in the block.For instance, does the lease contain a right of way over an accessway or staircase?

Ground rent - how much and when you need to pay, and also know whether this is subject to change

You should have a good understanding of the insurance provisions

Repair and maintenance of the flat

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.

What the implications are if you breach a clause of your lease? For details of the information to be included in your report on your leasehold property in Gwaelod Y Garth please enquire of your solicitor in advance of your conveyancing in Gwaelod Y Garth

I am looking at a couple of maisonettes in Gwaelod Y Garth which have in the region of fifty years unexpired on the leases. Will this present a problem?

There are plenty of short leases in Gwaelod Y Garth. The lease is a right to use the premises for a prescribed time frame. As a lease shortens the saleability of the lease reduces and results in it becoming more costly to extend the lease. For this reason it is advisable to extend the lease term. More often than not it is difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease as mortgage companies may be reluctant to lend money on such properties. Lease extension can be a protracted process. We advise that you seek professional help from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this field

Last month I purchased a leasehold flat in Gwaelod Y Garth. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before my ownership?

Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. However, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to be sure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.

If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).

We expect to complete the disposal of our £450000 maisonette in Gwaelod Y Garth next week. The management company has quoted £348 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and previous years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in Gwaelod Y Garth?

For most leasehold sales in Gwaelod Y Garth conveyancing will involve, questions about the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :

• Answering pre-exchange questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Gwaelod Y Garth
• Copies of the building insurance and schedule
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your lawyer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Gwaelod Y Garth leasehold premises is £350. For Gwaelod Y Garth conveyancing transactions it is customary for the seller to pay for these costs. The landlord or their agents are under no legal obligation to answer such questions most will be willing to do so - albeit often at exorbitant prices where the fees bear little relation to the work involved. Unfortunately there is no law that requires fixed charges for administrative tasks. Neither is there any legal time frame by which they are obliged to provide answers.

Gwaelod Y Garth Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Sample of Questions you should ask before Purchasing

Plenty Gwaelod Y Garth leasehold apartments will have a service charge for the upkeep of the building set on behalf of the landlord. Where you buy the flat you will have to pay this charge, usually periodically accross the year. This may be anything from a few hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for large purpose-built blocks. There will also be a rentcharge to be met yearly, ordinarily this is not a exorbitant sum, say about £50-£100 but you need to enquire it because occasionally it could be prohibitively expensive. The answer will be important as a) areas may result in problems in the building as the common areas may start to deteriorate where repairs remain unpaid b) if the leaseholders have a dispute with the running of the building you will wish to know about it You should be aware if it is fewer than 80 years it will impact the value of the apartment. Check with your mortgage company that they are willing to to proceed given the lease term. A short lease means that you will most likely require a lease extension at some point and you need to have some idea of what this will be. For most Gwaelod Y Garthlease extensions you would need to own the property for a couple of years in order to be entitled to extend the lease.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Gwaelod Y Garth