Helen (my wife) and I may need to rent out our Church End ground floor flat for a while due to taking a sabbatical. We instructed a Church End conveyancing firm in 2002 but they have since shut and we did not have the foresight to get any advice as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?

Your lease governs the relationship between the freeholder and you the flat owner; in particular, it will indicate if subletting is prohibited, or permitted but only subject to certain conditions. The rule is that if the lease contains no specific ban or restriction, subletting is permitted. Most leases in Church End do not contain subletting altogether – such a provision would undoubtedly devalue the flat. In most cases there is simply a requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly supplying a copy of the tenancy agreement.

I only have Sixty One years remaining on my lease in Church End. I need to get lease extension but my freeholder is can not be found. What should I do?

If you meet the appropriate requirements, 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 extended by the Court. You will be obliged to prove that you or your lawyers have done all that could be expected to track down the landlord. In some cases a specialist would be useful to try and locate and to produce a report which can be accepted by the court as evidence that the freeholder can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a solicitor in relation to proving the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing Church End.

Looking forward to sign contracts shortly on a basement flat in Church End. Conveyancing lawyers assured me that they report fully within the next couple of days. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Church End should include some of the following:

• The unexpired lease term You should be advised as what happens when the lease ends, and informed of the importance of the 80 year mark
• Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, freeholder
• Does the lease prohibit wood flooring?
• Are you allowed to have a pet in the flat?
• Changes to the flat (alterations and additions)
• The landlord’s obligations to repair and maintain the building. It is important that you know who is responsible for the repair and maintenance of every part of the building
• Responsibility for repairing the window frames

I've found a house that appears to meet my requirements, at a reasonable price which is making it more attractive. I have subsequently been informed that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are issues purchasing a leasehold house in Church End. Conveyancing advisers have are soon to be appointed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Church End are freehold and not leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local solicitor used to dealing with such properties who can help the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are buying in Church End so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Church End conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they are used to advising on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. Being a leaseholder you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions for example obtaining the landlord’sconsent to carry out changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a maintenance charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the house is located on an estate. Your conveyancer should report to you on the legal implications.

I have attempted and failed to negotiate with my landlord for a lease extension without success. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal adjudicate on such matters? Can you recommend a Church End conveyancing firm to assist?

Absolutely. We can put you in touch with a Church End conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Church End property is Flat 1 30 Ennismore Avenue in September 2010. the Tribunal adopted and arrived at a premium for the lease extension of £29, 900 This case related to 1 flat. The remaining number of years on the lease was 68.34 years.

What makes a Church End lease problematic?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Church End. Most leases are unique and drafting errors can result in certain sections are missing. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• A provision to repair to or maintain parts of the premises
• A duty to insure the building
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

A defective lease can cause issues when trying to sell a property primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Halifax, Coventry Building Society, and Alliance & Leicester all have very detailed conveyancing instructions 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, obliging the purchaser to pull out.

I own a ground floor flat in Church End, conveyancing was carried out in 2004. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Equivalent flats in Church End with over 90 years remaining are worth £190,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £60 levied per year. The lease terminates on 21st October 2081

With just 55 years remaining on your lease we estimate the premium for your lease extension to be between £32,300 and £37,400 plus legals.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to supply the actual costs in the absence of detailed investigations. Do not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional issues that need to be taken into account and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward placing reliance on this information without first getting professional advice.