My partner and I may need to let out our Heath ground floor flat for a while due to a career opportunity. We used a Heath conveyancing firm in 2002 but they have closed and we did not think at the time seek any advice as to whether the lease prohibits the subletting of the flat. How do we find out?

Notwithstanding that your previous Heath conveyancing solicitor is no longer available 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. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you need to obtain consent from your landlord or some other party in advance of subletting. This means you not allowed to sublet in the absence of prior consent. The consent must not not be unreasonably turned down. If the lease does not allow you to sublet you will need to ask your landlord for their consent.

Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only Seventy years remaining on my flat in Heath. I now wish to get lease extension but my freeholder is missing. What options are available to me?

On the basis that you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be extended by the Court. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have made all reasonable attempts to locate the freeholder. In some cases a specialist should be useful to conduct investigations and to produce an expert document to be accepted by the court as proof that the landlord can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer in relation to devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Heath.

Last month I purchased a leasehold property in Heath. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before my ownership?

In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee 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 ensure 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).

Completion in due on our sale of a £ 475000 apartment in Heath on Monday in a week. The managing agents has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and 3 years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in Heath?

Heath conveyancing on leasehold flats usually involves the buyer’s lawyer submitting questions for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is not legally bound to answer such questions the majority will be willing to do so. They are at liberty levy a reasonable charge for answering questions or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average costs for the information that you are referring to is £350, in some situations it is in excess of £800. The administration charge demanded by the landlord must be accompanied by a synopsis of entitlements and obligations in respect of administration fees, without which the charge is not strictly payable. In reality one has no option but to pay whatever is demanded if you want to exchange contracts with the buyer.

When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Heath what are the most frequent lease defects?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Heath. Most leases is drafted differently and drafting errors can result in certain clauses 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
• A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
• 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 primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. HSBC Bank, Virgin Money, and Britannia all have express requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is problematic they may refuse to provide security, obliging the buyer to pull out.

I acquired a 1 bedroom flat in Heath, conveyancing formalities finalised 2005. Can you shed any light on how much the price could be for a 90 year extension to my lease? Similar flats in Heath with over 90 years remaining are worth £223,000. The ground rent is £65 charged once a year. The lease ends on 21st October 2085

You have 59 years remaining on your lease the likely cost is going to range between £24,700 and £28,600 as well as professional fees.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed investigations. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional concerns that need to be taken into account and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward placing reliance on this information without first getting professional advice.