Frank (my husband) and I may need to rent out our Kirkby In Furness garden flat temporarily due to taking a sabbatical. We instructed a Kirkby In Furness conveyancing firm in 2004 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 Kirkby In Furness conveyancing solicitor is no longer around you can check your lease to see if you are permitted to let out the property. The accepted inference is that if the deeds are non-specific, subletting is permitted. There may be a precondition that you are obliged to seek permission from your landlord or some other party in advance of subletting. This means that you cannot sublet in the absence of prior consent. Such consent must not not be unreasonably turned down. If your lease prohibits you from subletting the property you should ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold house in Kirkby In Furness. Conveyancing and Alliance & Leicester mortgage organised. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1994. The conveyancing practitioner in Kirkby In Furness who acted for me is not around.Any advice?

First contact HMLR to make sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is indeed the new freeholder. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Kirkby In Furness conveyancing solicitor to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for a few pound. Rest assured that regardless, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I am attracted to a couple of flats in Kirkby In Furness both have approximately fifty years remaining on the lease term. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

There are no two ways about it. A leasehold apartment in Kirkby In Furness is a wasting asset as a result of the shortening lease. The closer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it adversely affects the marketability of the premises. For most buyers and lenders, leases with under 75 years become less and less attractive. On a more positive note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the property for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of premises with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Kirkby In Furness conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. More often than not it is possible to negotiate informally with the freeholder to extend the lease They may agree to a smaller lump sum and an increase in the ground rent, but to shorter extension terms in return. You need to ensure that any new terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.

What are your top tips when it comes to choosing a Kirkby In Furness conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

When appointing a conveyancer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Kirkby In Furness conveyancing firm) it is most important that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We recommend that you speak with several firms including non Kirkby In Furness conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions could be useful:

• How familiar is the firm with lease extension legislation?

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Kirkby In Furness from the point of view of speeding up the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Kirkby In Furness can be reduced where you get in touch lawyers the minute your agents start advertising the property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers representatives.
• If you have carried out any alterations to the premises would they have required Landlord’s consent? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Kirkby In Furness state that internal structural changes or addition of wooden flooring require a licence issued by the Landlord acquiescing to such works. Should you dont have the approvals in place you should not contact the landlord without checking with your conveyancer in advance.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Kirkby In Furness - A selection of Queries Prior to Purchasing

You should be aware that where the lease has no more than 80 years it will have adverse implications on the value of the apartment. Check with your lender that they are content with residual term of the lease. Leases with fewer than 80 years remaining means that you will almost definitely have to extend the lease sooner rather than later and it is worth discovering how much this would cost. For most Kirkby In Furnesslease extensions you would be required to have owned the premises for 24 months before you are eligible to exercise a lease extension. For most Kirkby In Furness leaseholds the cost for major works tend not to be included within maintenance charges, albeit that there some managing agents in Kirkby In Furness ask tenants to pay into a reserve fund and this is used to offset against larger repairs or maintenance. What prohibitions exist in the Kirkby In Furness Lease?

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Kirkby In Furness