My husband and I may need to sub-let our Poole ground floor flat for a while due to taking a sabbatical. We used a Poole conveyancing practice in 2002 but they have closed and we did not have the foresight to seek any guidance as to whether the lease permits subletting. How do we find out?

Notwithstanding that your previous Poole conveyancing solicitor is no longer available you can check your lease to check if it allows you to sublet the apartment. The rule is that if the deeds are silent, subletting is permitted. There may be a precondition that you are obliged to seek permission from your landlord or other appropriate person before subletting. This means that you cannot sublet in the absence of first obtaining permission. Such consent should not be unreasonably withheld. If your lease does not allow you to sublet you will need to ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

I’m about to sell my 2 bed apartment in Poole.Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon but I have just received a yearly maintenance charge demand – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

It best that you pay 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. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

I am looking at a couple of flats in Poole which have about forty five years remaining on the lease term. Will this present a problem?

A lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the property for a period of time. As a lease shortens the marketability of the lease deteriorate and it becomes more costly to extend the lease. This is why it is advisable to increase the term of the lease. More often than not it is difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease because mortgage companies may be unwilling to lend money on properties of this type. Lease extension can be a protracted process. We recommend you seek professional assistance from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this arena

I work for a reputable estate agent office in Poole where we have experienced a number of flat sales jeopardised due to short leases. I have been given contradictory information from local Poole conveyancing solicitors. Please can you shed some light as to whether the seller of a flat can commence the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the buyer need not have to wait 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, 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.

Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on the disposal of our £125000 garden flat in Poole next Thursday . The landlords agents has quoted £396 for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and previous years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in Poole?

Poole conveyancing on leasehold flats usually involves the buyer’s lawyer sending enquiries for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is not legally bound to respond to these enquiries most will be content to do so. They are at liberty invoice a reasonable charge for responding to enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average fee for the paperwork that you are referring to is £350, in some transactions it is above £800. The administration charge levied by the landlord must be sent together with a summary of rights and obligations in respect of administration fees, otherwise the charge is not strictly payable. In reality you have no choice but to pay whatever is requested of you if you want to complete the sale of your home.

I acquired a basement flat in Poole, conveyancing formalities finalised in 1996. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Corresponding flats in Poole with over 90 years remaining are worth £258,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £65 levied per year. The lease runs out on 21st October 2082

With only 57 years unexpired we estimate the premium for your lease extension to range between £26,600 and £30,800 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure in the absence of comprehensive due diligence. Do not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt other issues that need to be considered and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action based on this information without first getting professional advice.

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Lease Extensions in Poole