I am intending to rent out my leasehold flat in Hurworth. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask her. Do I need to ask my freeholder for their consent?

Even though your previous Hurworth conveyancing lawyer is no longer available you can check your lease to see if you are permitted to let out the premises. The accepted inference is that if the lease is non-specific, subletting is permitted. There may be a precondition that you need to seek permission from your landlord or other appropriate person prior to subletting. The net result is you not allowed to sublet in the absence of first obtaining permission. The consent must not not be unreasonably turned down. If your lease prohibits you from subletting the property you will need to ask your landlord for their consent.

I am looking at a couple of apartments in Hurworth both have approximately fifty years left on the lease term. Will this present a problem?

A lease is a right to use the premises for a prescribed time frame. As a lease gets shorter the value of the lease decreases and it becomes more expensive to acquire a lease extension. For this reason it is often a good idea to extend the lease term. Sometimes it is difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease as mortgage companies less inclined to grant a loan on such properties. Lease extension can be a protracted process. We recommend you seek professional help from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this arena

I am a negotiator for a busy estate agent office in Hurworth where we have witnessed a number of flat sales put at risk due to short leases. I have received inconsistent advice from local Hurworth conveyancing firms. Please can you clarify whether the owner of a flat can start the lease extension process for the buyer?

Provided that the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the buyer can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

Alternatively, it may be possible to agree the lease extension with the freeholder 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 purchaser.

We expect to complete the disposal of our £225000 garden flat in Hurworth next Tuesday . The managing agents has quoted £360 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and 3 years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Hurworth?

For the majority of leasehold sales in Hurworth conveyancing will involve, queries regarding the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :

• Answering pre-contract questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Hurworth
• Supplying insurance information
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your solicitor will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Hurworth leasehold premises is £350. For Hurworth 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 required to supply the information.

Are there frequently found deficiencies that you see in leases for Hurworth properties?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Hurworth. Most leases is drafted differently and drafting errors can result in certain sections are wrong. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the building
• A duty to insure the building
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

A defective lease will likely cause issues when trying to sell a property primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. HSBC Bank, Leeds Building Society, and Godiva Mortgages Ltd all have very detailed conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is defective they may refuse to grant the mortgage, forcing the buyer to withdraw.

I acquired a ground floor flat in Hurworth, conveyancing having been completed 2010. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Similar properties in Hurworth with a long lease are worth £235,000. The ground rent is £60 per annum. The lease finishes on 21st October 2088

With just 67 years unexpired we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £10,500 and £12,000 plus professional fees.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to supply the actual costs in the absence of comprehensive due diligence. You should not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be other concerns that need to be taken into account and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action placing reliance on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.

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Lease Extensions in Hurworth