My fiance and I may need to let out our Mayfield garden flat temporarily due to a new job. We used a Mayfield conveyancing practice in 2002 but they have since shut and we did not think at the time get any advice as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?

Notwithstanding that your last Mayfield conveyancing lawyer is no longer available you can check your lease to see if it allows you to sublet the premises. The rule is that if the lease is silent, subletting is permitted. There may be a precondition that you are obliged to obtain permission via your landlord or some other party in advance of subletting. This means that you cannot sublet without prior permission. The consent is not allowed to be unreasonably withheld. If the lease prohibits you from subletting the property you should ask your landlord for their consent.

I’m about to sell my basement apartment in Mayfield.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just had a yearly maintenance charge demand – what should I do?

The sensible thing to do is clear 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 management companies 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.

Back In 2001, I bought a leasehold house in Mayfield. Conveyancing and Bank of Scotland mortgage are in place. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1995. The conveyancing solicitor in Mayfield who acted for me is not around.Do I pay?

The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to make sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. You do not need to instruct a Mayfield conveyancing lawyer to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. You should note that in any event, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

Last month I purchased a leasehold flat in Mayfield. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before 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. 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).

What makes a Mayfield lease unacceptable for security purposes?

Leasehold conveyancing in Mayfield is not unique. All leases is drafted differently and drafting errors can sometimes mean that certain provisions are erroneous. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the property
• A duty to insure the building
• A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

A defective lease will likely cause problems when trying to sell a property primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Lloyds TSB Bank, Leeds Building Society, and Clydesdale all have very detailed requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is defective they may refuse to provide security, obliging the buyer to withdraw.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Mayfield - A selection of Questions you should consider before buying

How long is the Lease? It would be sensible to discover as much as you can about the company managing the block as they will either make living at the property much simpler or much more difficult. Being a leasehold owner you are frequently in the clutches of the managing agents both financially and when it comes to day to day matters such as the tidiness of the communal areas. Enquire of other tenants what they think of their management. Finally, investigate as to the dates that the maintenance fees are due to the relevant party and specifically how they are spending the funds. Can you tell me if there are any major works anticipated that could add a premium to the maintenance costs?

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Mayfield