I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Padstow. Before diving in I require certainty as to the number of years remaining on the lease.

Assuming the lease is recorded at the land registry - and almost all are in Padstow - then the leasehold title will always include the basic details 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.

I want to let out my leasehold apartment in Padstow. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask him. Is permission from the freeholder required?

Even though your last Padstow conveyancing lawyer is no longer around you can check your lease to see if it allows you to sublet the premises. The accepted inference is that if the lease is non-specific, subletting is permitted. There may be a precondition that you need to seek permission via your landlord or some other party prior to subletting. This means that you cannot sublet in the absence of first obtaining consent. Such consent is not allowed to be unreasonably turned down. If your lease does not allow you to sublet you should ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

Last month I purchased a leasehold property in Padstow. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to my ownership?

In a situation 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. 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).

I am a negotiator for a reputable estate agent office in Padstow where we see a few flat sales derailed due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received contradictory information from local Padstow conveyancing firms. Please can you clarify whether the vendor of a flat can commence the lease extension process 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. The benefit of this is that the buyer can avoid having to wait 2 years to extend their lease. 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.

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.

Can you offer any advice when it comes to finding a Padstow conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a property lawyer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Padstow conveyancing practice) it is imperative that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We recommend that you speak with several firms including non Padstow conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be of use:

• How familiar is the practice with lease extension legislation?

Padstow Leasehold Conveyancing - Sample of Queries Prior to Purchasing

How is the lease structured? Can you inform me if there are any major works anticipated that will increase the service costs? You should be aware that where the lease has no more than eighty years it will have adverse implications on the salability of the property. It is worth checking with your bank that they are willing to lend given the lease term. Leases with less than 80 years remaining means that you will almost definitely need a lease extension sooner rather than later and you need to have some idea of how much this will be. Remember, in most cases you will be be obliged to have owned the residence for two years before you are eligible to extend the lease.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Padstow