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

Even though your previous Llanelli conveyancing lawyer is not around you can check your lease to check if you are permitted to let out the premises. The rule is that if the deeds are non-specific, subletting is permitted. There may be a precondition that you need to obtain permission from your landlord or some other party in advance of subletting. The net result is you not allowed to sublet in the absence of first obtaining consent. The consent is not allowed to be unreasonably withheld. If the lease does not allow you to sublet you will need to ask your landlord for their consent.

I am looking at a couple of maisonettes in Llanelli which have approximately forty five years remaining on the lease term. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

There are plenty of short leases in Llanelli. The lease is a right to use the property for a period of time. As a lease shortens the marketability of the lease decreases and it becomes more costly to acquire a lease extension. For this reason it is advisable to increase the term of the lease. Sometimes it is difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease as mortgage lenders less inclined to grant a loan on properties of this type. Lease extension can be a protracted process. We recommend you seek professional assistance from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this arena

Last month I purchased a leasehold house in Llanelli. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before my ownership?

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. A critical element 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).

I work for a long established estate agent office in Llanelli where we have witnessed a few flat sales jeopardised due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given conflicting advice from local Llanelli conveyancing solicitors. Can you clarify whether the owner of a flat can instigate the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

As long as the seller has owned the lease 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 proposed purchaser need not have to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.

Alternatively, it may be possible to agree the lease extension with the freeholder 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 purchaser.

Completion in due on the disposal of our £225000 garden flat in Llanelli next week. The managing agents has quoted £348 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and 3 years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge such fees for a leasehold conveyance in Llanelli?

Llanelli conveyancing on leasehold apartments normally necessitates the purchaser’s solicitor submitting questions for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is not legally bound to address these enquiries the majority will be willing to assist. They are at liberty levy a reasonable administration fee for answering questions or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average costs for the information that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some situations it exceeds £800. The administration charge required by the landlord must be accompanied by a synopsis of entitlements and obligations in respect of administration charges, otherwise the charge is not strictly payable. Reality however dictates that you have no option but to pay whatever is demanded if you want to complete the sale of your home.

I am the registered owner of a leasehold flat in Llanelli, conveyancing formalities finalised in 2002. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Equivalent flats in Llanelli with over 90 years remaining are worth £206,000. The ground rent is £50 yearly. The lease ends on 21st October 2097

You have 74 years remaining on your lease we estimate the price of your lease extension to range between £8,600 and £9,800 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to supply the actual costs without more detailed investigations. You should not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt additional concerns that need to be considered and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action placing reliance on this information before getting professional advice.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Llanelli