Helen (my wife) and I may need to let out our Kinmel Bay ground floor flat for a while due to a new job. We instructed a Kinmel Bay conveyancing firm in 2002 but they have since shut and we did not think at the time get any guidance as to whether the lease prohibits the subletting of the flat. How do we find out?

The lease governs the relationship between the freeholder and you the leaseholder; in particular, it will say if subletting is not allowed, or permitted but only subject to certain caveats. The accepted inference is that if the lease contains no specific ban or restriction, subletting is allowed. The majority of leases in Kinmel Bay do not contain an absolute prevention of subletting – such a provision would undoubtedly devalue the property. Instead, there is usually simply a requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly supplying a duplicate of the sublease.

Due to sign contracts shortly on a garden flat in Kinmel Bay. Conveyancing solicitors inform me that they will have a report out to me within the next couple of days. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Kinmel Bay should include some of the following:

• You should be sent a copy of the lease

I’m about to sell my garden flat in Kinmel Bay.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just had a yearly service charge demand – what should I do?

The sensible thing to do is pay 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. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

Back In 2001, I bought a leasehold flat in Kinmel Bay. Conveyancing and Leeds Building Society mortgage organised. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1993. The conveyancing solicitor in Kinmel Bay who acted for me is not around.Any advice?

The first thing you should do is make enquiries of the Land Registry to make sure that this person is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. There is no need to instruct a Kinmel Bay conveyancing firm to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. You should note that in any event, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I am a negotiator for a reputable estate agency in Kinmel Bay where we have witnessed a number of flat sales derailed due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given conflicting advice from local Kinmel Bay conveyancing firms. Please can you clarify whether the vendor of a flat can commence the lease extension process for the buyer?

As long as 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 can avoid having 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 prior to, or at the same time as completion of the sale.

An alternative approach is 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.

I acquired a 2 bed flat in Kinmel Bay, conveyancing having been completed half a dozen years ago. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Equivalent flats in Kinmel Bay with a long lease are worth £179,000. The ground rent is £50 invoiced annually. The lease terminates on 21st October 2102

With just 77 years unexpired the likely cost is going to range between £9,500 and £11,000 plus costs.

The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure without more detailed investigations. Do not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt other concerns that need to be considered 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 without first getting professional advice.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Kinmel Bay