I am intending to sublet my leasehold apartment in Newbury. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask her. Do I need to ask my freeholder for permission?

Even though your previous Newbury conveyancing lawyer is not available you can review your lease to see if it allows you to sublet the apartment. The accepted inference is that if the deeds are non-specific, subletting is permitted. There may be a precondition that you need to obtain consent from your landlord or other appropriate person prior to subletting. The net result is you not allowed to sublet without prior consent. The consent should not be unreasonably turned down. If the lease does not allow you to sublet you will need to ask your landlord for their consent.

There are only 62 years left on my flat in Newbury. I am keen to get lease extension but my freeholder is missing. What options are available to me?

If you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for for permission 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 or your lawyers have done all that could be expected to locate the landlord. In some cases a specialist may be useful to conduct investigations and to produce a report to be accepted by the court as evidence that the landlord is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a solicitor in relation to devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Newbury.

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a couple of maisonettes in Newbury both have about forty five years left on the leases. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

A lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the property for a period of time. As the lease shortens the saleability of the lease reduces and it becomes more costly to acquire a lease extension. This is why it is often a good idea to extend the lease term. More often than not it is difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease as mortgage companies less inclined to grant a loan on properties of this type. Lease enfranchisement can be a protracted process. We advise that you get professional help from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this area

Last month I purchased a leasehold flat in Newbury. 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).

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Newbury from the point of view of saving time on the sale process?

• Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Newbury can be bypassed if you appoint lawyers the minute your agents start marketing the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold documentation needed by the purchasers’ lawyers.
• Many landlords or managing agents in Newbury levy fees for providing management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should find out the actual amount of the charges. The management information sought on or before finding a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The average time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most common cause of frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Newbury.
• A minority of Newbury leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, it would be prudent to place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. Any bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are financially capable of paying the annual service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their lawyers.
• If you have had conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is essential that these are settled before the property is marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where a dispute is unsettled. You may have to bite the bullet and discharge any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as over as opposed to ongoing.
• You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but you should double-check by asking your lawyers. A purchaser's lawyer will not be happy to advise their client to to exchange contracts if the lease term is below 80 years. It is therefore important at an early stage that you consider whether the lease term requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale.

Newbury Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - A selection of Questions you should consider Prior to buying

It is important to be aware whether redecorating or some other major work is coming up that will be shared by the leaseholders and will dramatically increase the the maintenance charges or necessitate a specific payment.