I wish to rent out my leasehold flat in Maidenhead. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask him. Is permission from the freeholder required?

The lease dictates the relationship between the landlord and you the flat owner; in particular, it will set out if subletting is banned, or permitted but only subject to certain caveats. The rule is that if the lease contains no expres ban or restriction, subletting is permitted. Most leases in Maidenhead do not prevent an absolute prevention of subletting – such a clause would adversely affect the market value the flat. In most cases there is simply a requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly supplying a copy of the tenancy agreement.

Back In 2009, I bought a leasehold house in Maidenhead. Conveyancing and Coventry Building Society mortgage are in place. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1991. The conveyancing practitioner in Maidenhead who acted for me is not around.Do I pay?

The first thing you should do is make enquiries of HMLR to be sure that this person is in fact the new freeholder. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Maidenhead conveyancing solicitor to do this as it can be done on-line for less than a fiver. You should note that in any event, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

I've recently bought a leasehold property in Maidenhead. Do I have any liability for service charges relating to a period prior to completion of my purchase?

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. However, 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 work for a busy estate agent office in Maidenhead where we have witnessed a number of flat sales put at risk due to short leases. I have received conflicting advice from local Maidenhead conveyancing firms. Could you confirm whether the vendor of a flat can start the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that 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. This means that the buyer can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed before, or simultaneously with completion of the sale.

An alternative approach is 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 buyer.

Are there frequently found deficiencies that you encounter in leases for Maidenhead properties?

Leasehold conveyancing in Maidenhead is not unique. Most leases are individual and legal mistakes in the legal wording can result in certain sections are not included. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the property
• Insurance obligations
• 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 problems when trying to sell a property as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Barclays , Bank of Scotland, and Bank of Ireland all have express conveyancing instructions 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 provide security, forcing the buyer to pull out.

I acquired a basement flat in Maidenhead, conveyancing formalities finalised half a dozen years ago. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Corresponding flats in Maidenhead with an extended lease are worth £197,000. The ground rent is £60 charged once a year. The lease ceases on 21st October 2095

With 69 years remaining on your lease the likely cost is going to span between £11,400 and £13,200 as well as legals.

The figure above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to provide a more accurate figure without more detailed due diligence. You should not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt additional concerns that need to be taken into account and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward based on this information before getting professional advice.