Frank (my husband) and I may need to rent out our Hove ground floor flat temporarily due to a new job. We used a Hove conveyancing practice in 2002 but they have since shut and we did not think at the time seek any advice as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?

Notwithstanding that your previous Hove conveyancing lawyer is not available you can check your lease to check if it allows you to sublet the apartment. The rule is that if the deeds are non-specific, subletting is permitted. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you must seek consent from your landlord or some other party prior to subletting. This means that you cannot sublet without prior consent. The consent must not not be unreasonably turned down. If your lease prohibits you from letting out the property you should ask your landlord for their consent.

I have recently realised that I have 68 years unexpired on my lease in Hove. I am keen to extend my lease but my freeholder is missing. What options are available to me?

If 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 extended by the magistrate. You will be obliged to prove that you have used your best endeavours to find the lessor. On the whole a specialist would be helpful to try and locate and to produce a report which can be accepted by the court as proof that the landlord is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a conveyancer in relation to devolving into the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court covering Hove.

I’m about to sell my 2 bed flat in Hove.Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon but I have just had a quarterly maintenance charge demand – 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. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

Last month I purchased a leasehold house in Hove. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to my ownership?

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. It is an essential part 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).

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Hove with the intention of speeding up the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Hove can be reduced where you instruct lawyers the minute your agents start advertising the property and ask them to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers solicitors.
• If you have carried out any alterations to the premises would they have required Landlord’s consent? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Hove leases often stipulate that internal structural changes or addition of wooden flooring calls for a licence from the Landlord approving such works. If you fail to have the consents in place do not contact the landlord without checking with your conveyancer in the first instance.

I bought a basement flat in Hove, conveyancing was carried out 8 years ago. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Comparable properties in Hove with an extended lease are worth £238,000. The ground rent is £55 charged once a year. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2086

With 61 years remaining on your lease the likely cost is going to span between £21,900 and £25,200 as well as professional fees.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of comprehensive due diligence. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be other issues that need to be considered and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward placing reliance on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.

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Lease Extensions in Hove