I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Kinver. Before diving in I would like to find out the unexpired term of the lease.

If the lease is registered - and almost all are in Kinver - then the leasehold title will always include the basic details of the lease, namely the date; the term; and the original parties. From a conveyancing perspective such details then enable any prospective buyer and lender to confirm that any lease they are looking at is the one relevant to that title.For any other purpose, such as confirming how long the term was granted for and calculating what is left, then the register should be sufficient on it's own.

My partner and I may need to sub-let our Kinver ground floor flat for a while due to a career opportunity. We used a Kinver conveyancing practice in 2002 but they have since shut and we did not have the foresight to seek any guidance as to whether the lease prohibits the subletting of the flat. How do we find out?

Even though your previous Kinver conveyancing solicitor is not around you can check your lease to check if it allows you to sublet the premises. The rule is that if the deeds are non-specific, subletting is allowed. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you need to obtain consent from your landlord or some other party in advance of subletting. The net result is that you cannot sublet in the absence of first obtaining consent. Such consent should not be unreasonably refused ore delayed. If the lease prohibits you from subletting the property you will need to ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

I today plan to offer on a house that seems to meet my requirements, at a great figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have just been informed that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are particular concerns buying a leasehold house in Kinver. Conveyancing solicitors have are about to be instructed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Kinver are freehold rather than leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer used to dealing with such properties who can help the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are buying in Kinver in which case you should be shopping around for a Kinver conveyancing practitioner and check that they have experience in dealing with leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. Being a tenant you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions for example requiring the freeholder’spermission to carry out alterations. It may be necessary to pay a service charge towards the maintenance of the communal areas where the property is located on an estate. Your conveyancer will appraise you on the various issues.

I've recently bought a leasehold property in Kinver. 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. Strange as it may seem, 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 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).

Are there common deficiencies that you come across in leases for Kinver properties?

Leasehold conveyancing in Kinver is not unique. Most leases are unique and drafting errors can sometimes mean that certain provisions are missing. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• A provision to repair to or maintain elements of the premises
• Insurance obligations
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

You will encounter a problem when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Birmingham Midshires, The Royal Bank of Scotland, and Britannia all have express requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is defective they may refuse to provide security, obliging the buyer to pull out.

I purchased a 1st floor flat in Kinver, conveyancing having been completed 2012. How much will my lease extension cost? Corresponding properties in Kinver with over 90 years remaining are worth £224,000. The ground rent is £60 invoiced annually. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2097

With only 72 years left to run we estimate the premium for your lease extension to be between £13,300 and £15,400 as well as professional fees.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed investigations. You should not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. 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. Neither should you move forward based on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.

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Lease Extensions in Kinver