I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Locksbottom. Before I set the wheels in motion I require certainty as to the unexpired term of the lease.

If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and 99.9% are in Locksbottom - then the leasehold title will always include the short particulars of the lease, namely the date; the term; and the original parties. From a conveyancing perspective such details then enable any prospective buyer and lender to confirm that any lease they are looking at is the one relevant to that title.For any other purpose, such as confirming how long the term was granted for and calculating what is left, then the register should be sufficient on it's own.

My fiance and I may need to sub-let our Locksbottom basement flat for a while due to a new job. We used a Locksbottom conveyancing firm in 2001 but they have closed and we did not have the foresight to seek any advice as to whether the lease permits subletting. How do we find out?

Notwithstanding that your previous Locksbottom conveyancing solicitor is not available you can check your lease to check if you are permitted to let out the property. The accepted inference is that if the lease is silent, subletting is permitted. There may be a precondition that you must seek consent from your landlord or some other party prior to subletting. This means that you cannot sublet in the absence of first obtaining permission. The consent should not be unreasonably turned down. If your lease prohibits you from letting out the property you should ask your landlord for their consent.

There are only 62 years remaining on my flat in Locksbottom. I now wish to extend my lease but my landlord is absent. What should I do?

If you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be extended by the Court. You will be obliged to prove that you have done all that could be expected to find the freeholder. On the whole a specialist may be helpful to carry out a search and prepare an expert document to be used as evidence that the landlord is indeed missing. 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 Locksbottom.

I work for a reputable estate agent office in Locksbottom where we have witnessed a few leasehold sales put at risk due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received inconsistent advice from local Locksbottom conveyancing firms. Could you shed some light as to whether the seller of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

As long as the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the buyer can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, 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 am the proprietor of a two-bedroom flat in Locksbottom. Given that I can not reach agreement with the freeholder, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal make a decision on the premium due for a lease extension?

Most definitely. We can put you in touch with a Locksbottom conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Locksbottom premises is 1 Southlands Court Southlands Road in September 2013. The Leasehold Valuation Tribunal determined that the premium to be paid by the tenant on the grant of a new lease, in accordance with section 56 and Schedule 13 of the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 was £30,541 This case related to 1 flat. The unexpired lease term was 50.57 years.

Are there frequently found defects that you encounter in leases for Locksbottom properties?

Leasehold conveyancing in Locksbottom is not unique. Most leases are unique and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain provisions are not included. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• A provision to repair 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

A defective lease can cause issues when trying to sell a property 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 does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to grant the mortgage, obliging the buyer to pull out.