I am intending to rent out my leasehold flat in Llanelli. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask him. Do I need to ask my freeholder for permission?

Notwithstanding that your last Llanelli conveyancing lawyer is not available you can check your lease to see if you are permitted to let out the apartment. The accepted inference is that if the deeds are silent, subletting is allowed. There may be a precondition that you must seek permission via your landlord or other appropriate person before subletting. This means that you cannot sublet in the absence of first obtaining permission. The consent is not allowed to be unreasonably turned down. If the lease does not allow you to sublet you will need to ask your landlord for their consent.

There are only 72 years remaining on my lease in Llanelli. I now want to extend my lease but my landlord is missing. What should I do?

If you meet the appropriate requirements, 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 enable the lease to be granted an extra 90 years by the magistrate. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have used your best endeavours to find the landlord. For most situations an enquiry agent should be useful to conduct investigations and to produce an expert document which can be used as proof that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a solicitor in relation to proving the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing Llanelli.

I’m about to sell my basement flat in Llanelli.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just had a yearly service charge demand – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should pay the service charge as normal because all ground rent and service charges will be apportioned on completion, so you will be reimbursed by the buyer for the period running from after the completion date to the next payment date. Most managing agents will not acknowledge the buyer until the service charges have been paid and are up to date so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

Last month I purchased a leasehold house in Llanelli. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

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. A critical element of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to be sure 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).

All being well we will complete the disposal of our £325000 maisonette in Llanelli in nine days. The landlords agents has quoted £324 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and previous years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Llanelli?

Llanelli conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes often requires the purchaser’s conveyancer sending questions for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to address these enquiries the majority will be willing to do so. They are at liberty invoice a reasonable charge for responding to questions or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average costs for the information that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some transactions it is in excess of £800. The administration charge required by the landlord must be accompanied by a synopsis of entitlements and obligations in respect of administration charges, without which the invoice is not strictly payable. In reality one has no choice but to pay whatever is requested of you should you wish to sell the property.

I bought a split level flat in Llanelli, conveyancing formalities finalised half a dozen years ago. How much will my lease extension cost? Equivalent properties in Llanelli with a long lease are worth £168,000. The ground rent is £60 invoiced every year. The lease ends on 21st October 2087

With 65 years left to run we estimate the premium for your lease extension to range between £14,300 and £16,400 plus professional fees.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure without more comprehensive investigations. Do not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt other issues that need to be considered and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward based on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.

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Lease Extensions in Llanelli