I wish to sublet my leasehold apartment in Linslade. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask her. Do I need to ask my freeholder for their consent?

Notwithstanding that your previous Linslade conveyancing lawyer is no longer around you can check your lease to see if it allows you to sublet the apartment. The accepted inference is that if the lease is silent, subletting is permitted. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you are obliged to seek permission via your landlord or other appropriate person in advance of subletting. This means that you cannot sublet without first obtaining 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.

There are only 68 years remaining on my lease in Linslade. I now wish to extend my lease but my freeholder is missing. What are my options?

If you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be granted an extra 90 years by the Court. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have made all reasonable attempts to track down the freeholder. In some cases an enquiry agent should be useful to conduct investigations and prepare a report which can be used as proof that the landlord can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a solicitor both on proving the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing Linslade.

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Linslade from the perspective of speeding up the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Linslade can be avoided if you instruct lawyers as soon as you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the purchasers’ solicitors.
• Many freeholders or managing agents in Linslade charge for providing management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should discover the fee that they propose to charge. The management information can be applied for as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. The typical amount of time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most usual reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Linslade.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s permission? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Linslade state that internal structural alterations or addition of wooden flooring necessitate a licence from the Landlord approving such alterations. Should you fail to have the paperwork to hand do not contact the landlord without checking with your solicitor in advance.
• If you have had any disputes with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved before the property is put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where there is a current dispute. You may need to swallow your pride and discharge any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal particulars of the dispute to the buyers, but it is better to reveal the dispute as historic rather than unsettled.
• You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but you should double-check by asking your lawyers. A buyer’s conveyancer will be unlikely to recommend their client to to exchange contracts if the lease term is less than 75 years. It is therefore important at an as soon as possible that you identify whether the lease term requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

If all goes to plan we aim to complete the sale of our £ 425000 maisonette in Linslade in 8 days. The management company has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and 3 years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge an administration fee for a flat conveyance in Linslade?

Linslade conveyancing on leasehold apartments often necessitates the buyer’s lawyer sending questions for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to address such questions most will be willing to assist. They are at liberty invoice a reasonable charge for answering questions or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average fee for the information that you are referring to is £350, in some cases it is in excess of £800. The management information fee demanded by the landlord must be sent together with a summary of rights and obligations in respect of administration fees, without which the charge is not strictly payable. In reality you have little option but to pay whatever is requested of you if you want to complete the sale of your home.

What makes a Linslade lease problematic?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Linslade. Most leases are unique and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain provisions are wrong. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• Repairing obligations 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 as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Yorkshire Building Society, Leeds Building Society, and Clydesdale all have very detailed requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is problematic they may refuse to grant the mortgage, forcing the purchaser to pull out.

I acquired a leasehold flat in Linslade, conveyancing was carried out in 1999. Can you shed any light on how much the price could be for a 90 year extension to my lease? Corresponding properties in Linslade with a long lease are worth £253,000. The ground rent is £45 levied per year. The lease ceases on 21st October 2077

With 51 years unexpired we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £34,200 and £39,600 plus legals.

The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs without more comprehensive due diligence. Do not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt other concerns that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action placing reliance on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.