Frank (my husband) and I may need to rent out our Pevensey ground floor flat for a while due to a new job. We instructed a Pevensey conveyancing practice in 2003 but they have closed and we did not have the foresight to seek any guidance as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?

A small minority of properties in Pevensey do contain a provision to say that subletting is only allowed with permission. The landlord cannot unreasonably withhold but, in such cases, they would need to see references. Experience suggests that problems are usually caused by unsatisfactory tenants rather than owner-occupiers and for that reason you can expect the freeholder to take up the references and consider them carefully before granting permission.

There are only Fifty years unexpired on my lease in Pevensey. I now want to extend my lease but my landlord is can not be found. What should I do?

If you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application 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. However, you will be required to prove that you or your lawyers have done all that could be expected to locate the lessor. On the whole a specialist would be useful to carry out a search and to produce an expert document which can be used as evidence that the landlord is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a solicitor both on investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court covering Pevensey.

I am looking at a two maisonettes in Pevensey which have approximately 50 years remaining on the leases. Do I need to be concerned?

There are plenty of short leases in Pevensey. The lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the property for a period of time. As a lease gets shorter the marketability of the lease decreases and it becomes more costly to acquire a lease extension. For this reason it is generally wise to extend the lease term. More often than not it is difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease as mortgage companies may be unwilling to lend money on properties of this type. Lease enfranchisement can be a difficult process. We advise that you get professional help from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this area

Last month I purchased a leasehold house in Pevensey. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before my ownership?

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).

We expect to complete the disposal of our £ 475000 apartment in Pevensey next Wednesday . The management company has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and previous years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge such fees for a leasehold conveyance in Pevensey?

Pevensey conveyancing on leasehold apartments usually involves the purchaser’s lawyer sending questions for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is not legally bound to answer such questions most will be content to assist. They may invoice a reasonable charge for responding to questions or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average costs for the paperwork that you are referring to is £350, in some transactions it exceeds £800. The management information fee demanded by the landlord must be accompanied by a synopsis of rights and obligations in relation to administration charges, otherwise the charge is not strictly payable. Reality however dictates that one has little option but to pay whatever is requested of you if you want to complete the sale of your home.

I am the registered owner of a split level flat in Pevensey, conveyancing having been completed 1995. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Similar flats in Pevensey with a long lease are worth £265,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £65 levied per year. The lease expires on 21st October 2080

With only 54 years unexpired we estimate the price of your lease extension to be between £32,300 and £37,400 as well as plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to advice on the actual costs in the absence of detailed investigations. Do not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt other concerns that need to be considered and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward placing reliance on this information before getting professional advice.