My husband and I may need to rent out our Ince in Makerfield ground floor flat temporarily due to a new job. We instructed a Ince in Makerfield conveyancing firm in 2002 but they have closed and we did not have the foresight to seek any guidance as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?

A small minority of properties in Ince in Makerfield do contain a provision to say that subletting is only permitted with prior consent from the landlord. The landlord cannot unreasonably refuse but, in such cases, they would need to review references. Experience suggests that problems are usually caused by unsatisfactory tenants rather than owner-occupiers and for that reason you can expect the freeholder to take up the references and consider them carefully before granting permission.

I am attracted to a couple of maisonettes in Ince in Makerfield which have approximately fifty years remaining on the leases. should I be concerned?

A lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the premises for a period of time. As a lease shortens the marketability of the lease deteriorate and it becomes more costly to acquire a lease extension. For this reason it is often a good idea to extend the lease term. Sometimes it is difficult to sell a property with a short lease because mortgage lenders may be reluctant to lend money on properties of this type. Lease enfranchisement can be a protracted process. We recommend you seek professional assistance from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this area

I am employed by a long established estate agent office in Ince in Makerfield where we have witnessed a number of leasehold sales put at risk as a result of short leases. I have been given conflicting advice from local Ince in Makerfield conveyancing firms. Could you clarify whether the seller of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

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 need not have to sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed before, or at the same time as completion of the sale.

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.

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Ince in Makerfield with the intention of speeding up the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Ince in Makerfield can be bypassed where you appoint lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and ask them to collate the leasehold information which will be required by the purchasers’ solicitors.
• The majority freeholders or Management Companies in Ince in Makerfield charge for supplying management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the fee that they propose to charge. The management information can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The typical amount of time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most common reason for frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Ince in Makerfield.
• Some Ince in Makerfield leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, it would be prudent to place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. Any bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are able to meet the yearly service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their lawyers.
• If you have had conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved before the property is marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where a dispute is unsettled. You may have to bite the bullet and discharge any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to present the dispute as over rather than unsettled.
• You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but you should verify this by asking your solicitors. A purchaser's lawyer will not be happy to advise their client to where the remaining number of years is below 75 years. It is therefore important at an early stage that you identify whether the lease for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale.

If all goes to plan we aim to complete the disposal of our £ 375000 flat in Ince in Makerfield on Tuesday in a week. The management company has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and previous years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in Ince in Makerfield?

Ince in Makerfield conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes usually requires the buyer’s solicitor sending questions for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is not legally bound to address these enquiries most will be content to do so. They may invoice a reasonable charge for responding to enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average costs for the paperwork that you are referring to is £350, in some situations it exceeds £800. The administration charge invoiced by the landlord must be accompanied by a summary of entitlements and obligations in respect of administration fees, otherwise the invoice is technically not due. Reality however dictates that you have no option but to pay whatever is demanded should you wish to exchange contracts with the buyer.

I bought a leasehold flat in Ince in Makerfield, conveyancing was carried out 2004. Can you shed any light on how much the price could be for a 90 year extension to my lease? Equivalent properties in Ince in Makerfield with a long lease are worth £190,000. The ground rent is £60 invoiced every year. The lease expires on 21st October 2097

With just 71 years remaining on your lease we estimate the premium for your lease extension to range between £11,400 and £13,200 plus legals.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs without more detailed investigations. 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 clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action based on this information before getting professional advice.