My wife and I may need to let out our Porthmadog 1st floor flat temporarily due to taking a sabbatical. We used a Porthmadog conveyancing practice in 2003 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?

Your lease governs relations between the freeholder and you the leaseholder; specifically, it will indicate if subletting is not allowed, or permitted but only subject to certain conditions. The accepted inference is that if the lease contains no expres ban or restriction, subletting is permitted. The majority of leases in Porthmadog do not prevent strict prohibition on subletting – such a provision would adversely affect the market value the flat. In most cases there is a basic requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly supplying a copy of the tenancy agreement.

Looking forward to complete next month on a leasehold property in Porthmadog. Conveyancing solicitors inform me that they will have a report out to me next week. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Porthmadog should include some of the following:

• You should be sent a copy of the lease

I've found a house that appears to meet my requirements, at a great figure which is making it more attractive. I have subsequently found out that the title is leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are issues buying a leasehold house in Porthmadog. Conveyancing solicitors have are about to be appointed. Will my lawyers set out the risks of buying a leasehold house in Porthmadog ?

The majority of houses in Porthmadog are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can assist with the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are buying in Porthmadog so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Porthmadog conveyancing practitioner and be sure that they are used to advising on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the unexpired lease term. Being a tenant you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want with the house. The lease comes with conditions such as requiring the landlord’sconsent to conduct alterations. It may be necessary to pay a contribution towards the upkeep of the communal areas where the house is part of an estate. Your solicitor should appraise you on the various issues.

I work for a busy estate agency in Porthmadog where we have experienced a number of flat sales derailed as a result of short leases. I have received conflicting advice from local Porthmadog conveyancing solicitors. Can you confirm whether the seller of a flat can initiate the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

As long as the seller has owned the lease 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. This means that the proposed purchaser need not have to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done prior to, or at the same time as completion of the sale.

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 purchaser.

Are there frequently found deficiencies that you come across in leases for Porthmadog properties?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Porthmadog. All leases are individual and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain provisions are wrong. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• A provision to repair to or maintain parts of the building
• Insurance obligations
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

You could encounter difficulties when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Nationwide Building Society, Chelsea Building Society, and Godiva Mortgages Ltd all have very detailed conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to provide security, obliging the buyer to pull out.

Porthmadog Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Queries Prior to Purchasing

Are there any major works in the planning that will increase the service costs? You should want to find out as much as possible concerning the company managing the block as they will either make your life much simpler or problematic. Being a leasehold owner you are often in the clutches of the managing agents both financially and when it comes to practical issues such as the cleanliness of the communal areas. Enquire of other tenants if they are happy with them. On a final note, find out the dates that the maintenance charges are due to the managing agents and precisely how they are spending the funds. The prefered form of lease arrangement is a share of the freehold. In this arrangement the leaseholders have control and although a managing agent is often retained where it is bigger than a house conversion, the managing agent is directed by the tenants.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Porthmadog