My wife and I may need to sub-let our Crews Hill garden flat for a while due to taking a sabbatical. We instructed a Crews Hill conveyancing practice in 2001 but they have closed and we did not have the foresight to seek any guidance as to whether the lease permits subletting. How do we find out?

Notwithstanding that your previous Crews Hill conveyancing lawyer is not available you can review your lease to check if it allows you to sublet the premises. The rule is that if the lease is non-specific, subletting is allowed. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you are obliged to obtain permission from your landlord or some other party before subletting. The net result is you not allowed to sublet in the absence of prior consent. The consent must not not be unreasonably turned down. If your lease prohibits you from letting out the property you should ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

Expecting to sign contracts shortly on a ground floor flat in Crews Hill. Conveyancing solicitors inform me that they report fully next week. What should I be looking out for?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Crews Hill should include some of the following:

• You should be sent a copy of the lease

I today plan to offer on a house that appears to be perfect, at a reasonable price which is making it all the more appealing. I have subsequently discovered that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are issues purchasing a leasehold house in Crews Hill. Conveyancing lawyers have are about to be instructed. Will they explain the issues?

Most houses in Crews Hill are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can help the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are purchasing in Crews Hill so you should seriously consider looking for a Crews Hill conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they have experience in dealing with leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the unexpired lease term. As a lessee you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions for example requiring the freeholder’sconsent to conduct changes to the property. You may also be required to pay a maintenance charge towards the upkeep of the estate where the house is part of an estate. Your conveyancer should advise you fully on all the issues.

Last month I purchased a leasehold property in Crews Hill. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before 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 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).

I am employed by a busy estate agent office in Crews Hill where we have experienced a few flat sales put at risk as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Crews Hill conveyancing solicitors. Can you clarify whether the owner of a flat can start the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

As long as the seller has been the owner 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. This means that the buyer 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 extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord 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.

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 Crews Hill conveyancing firm to help?

Where there is a absentee landlord or if there is disagreement about what the lease extension should cost, under the relevant statutes it is possible to make an application to the LVT to decide the price.

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement matter before the tribunal for a Crews Hill premises is 23 Beaconsfield Road in July 2013. The Tribunals decided that the amount payable was £31,203 for the freehold. This case affected 2 flats. The unexpired lease term was 70.31 years.