I would like to rent out my leasehold flat in Leiston. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask her. Do I need to ask my freeholder for permission?

Notwithstanding that your previous Leiston conveyancing solicitor is not available you can review your lease to see if you are permitted to let out the property. The accepted inference is that if the lease is non-specific, subletting is allowed. There may be a precondition that you must 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 prior consent. Such consent is not allowed to be unreasonably refused ore delayed. If your lease does not allow you to sublet you will need to ask your landlord for their consent.

I have recently realised that I have Fifty years remaining on my flat in Leiston. I now wish to get lease extension but my landlord is missing. What are my options?

If you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be extended by the magistrate. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you have made all reasonable attempts to find the lessor. In some cases an enquiry agent should be useful to try and locate and prepare an expert document which can be accepted by the court as evidence that the landlord can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer both on proving the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court overseeing Leiston.

I own a leasehold house in Leiston. Conveyancing and Skipton Building Society mortgage organised. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the freehold. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1995. The conveyancing solicitor in Leiston who previously acted has now retired.Any advice?

First contact HMLR to be sure that this person is in fact the new freeholder. You do not need to instruct a Leiston conveyancing practitioner to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for a few pound. You should note that in any event, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I've recently bought a leasehold property in Leiston. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to my ownership?

In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner 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).

What are your top tips when it comes to finding a Leiston conveyancing firm to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

If you are instructing a solicitor for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Leiston conveyancing practice) it is essential that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We advise that you make enquires with two or three firms including non Leiston conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions could be of use:

• If the firm is not ALEP accredited then what is the reason?

Leiston Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Queries before Purchasing

Best to be warned if a new roof is being installed or some other major work is due in the foreseeable future to be shared by the leaseholders and may well materially impact the level of the maintenance charges or require a specific payment. The prefered form of lease structure is if the freehold interest is owned by the leaseholders. In this scenario the leaseholders have control and notwithstanding that a managing agent is frequently employed if the building is bigger than a house conversion, the managing agent employed by the leaseholders. What is the length of the lease?

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Lease Extensions in Leiston