I wish to let out my leasehold apartment in Halkyn. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask him. Do I need to ask my freeholder for their consent?

Even though your previous Halkyn conveyancing solicitor is no longer around you can review your lease to check if you are permitted to let out the apartment. The accepted inference is that if the lease is non-specific, subletting is permitted. There may be a precondition that you must obtain permission from your landlord or other appropriate person in advance of subletting. The net result is you not allowed to sublet without prior consent. Such consent must not not be unreasonably turned down. If the lease does not allow you to sublet you should ask your landlord for their consent.

I have just started marketing my ground floor apartment in Halkyn.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just had a quarterly service charge demand – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should 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. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

I am employed by a long established estate agency in Halkyn where we see a few flat sales jeopardised due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received conflicting advice from local Halkyn conveyancing solicitors. Please can you confirm whether the owner of a flat can start the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the buyer need not have to wait 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed before, or simultaneously with completion of the sale.

Alternatively, it may be possible to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the buyer.

Can you offer any advice when it comes to finding a Halkyn conveyancing firm to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

When appointing a conveyancer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Halkyn conveyancing practice) 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 two or three firms including non Halkyn conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions might be helpful:

• If the firm is not ALEP accredited then what is the reason?
• What volume of lease extensions have they completed in Halkyn in the last 12 months?

Completion in due on the sale of our £ 325000 flat in Halkyn next week. The freeholder has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and previous years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge such fees for a leasehold conveyance in Halkyn?

Halkyn conveyancing on leasehold apartments normally involves the purchaser’s solicitor sending questions for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is not legally bound to respond to such questions most will be willing to do so. They are at liberty levy a reasonable administration fee for responding to enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average fee for the information that you are referring to is £350, in some cases it is in excess of £800. The administration charge demanded by the landlord must be sent together with a summary of rights and obligations in respect of administration fees, without which the invoice is not strictly payable. Reality however dictates that you have no choice but to pay whatever is demanded if you want to complete the sale of your home.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Halkyn - Sample of Queries before buying

How much is the ground rent and service charge?