Harry (my fiance) and I may need to let out our Rochdale ground floor flat for a while due to taking a sabbatical. We instructed a Rochdale conveyancing practice in 2001 but they have closed and we did not think at the time get any advice as to whether the lease permits subletting. How do we find out?

Notwithstanding that your previous Rochdale conveyancing lawyer is no longer around you can review your lease to check if you are permitted to let out the premises. The rule is that if the deeds are silent, subletting is permitted. There may be a precondition that you are obliged to obtain consent from your landlord or some other party in advance of subletting. The net result is that you cannot sublet in the absence of prior consent. Such consent must not not be unreasonably refused ore delayed. If the lease does not allow you to sublet you will need to ask your landlord for their consent.

I've recently bought a leasehold flat in Rochdale. Do I have any liability for 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. However, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to ensure 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).

Can you offer any advice when it comes to choosing a Rochdale conveyancing firm to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

When appointing a conveyancer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Rochdale conveyancing firm) it is essential that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We suggested that you make enquires with two or three firms including non Rochdale conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions could be of use:

• If the firm is not ALEP accredited then what is the reason?
• What are the legal fees for lease extension work?

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Rochdale from the perspective of speeding up the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Rochdale can be reduced if you instruct lawyers the minute your agents start marketing the property and request that they start to collate the leasehold information which will be required by the purchasers’ conveyancers.
• Many freeholders or Management Companies in Rochdale charge for supplying management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should find out the fee that they propose to charge. The management information can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus reducing delays. The typical amount of time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most common reason for frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Rochdale.
• If you have carried out any alterations to the premises would they have required Landlord’s consent? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Rochdale state that internal structural alterations or installing wooden flooring calls for a licence issued by the Landlord consenting to such changes. Should you dont have the paperwork in place you should not communicate with the landlord without contacting your solicitor in the first instance.
• Some Rochdale leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, it would be prudent to notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. The bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is financially capable of paying the yearly 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.
• You may think that you are aware of the number of years left on your lease but you should verify this by asking your solicitors. A buyer’s lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the lease term is below 80 years. It is therefore important at an as soon as possible that you consider whether the lease for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Rochdale what are the most frequent lease defects?

Leasehold conveyancing in Rochdale is not unique. Most leases are individual and drafting errors can sometimes mean that certain sections are missing. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the premises
• A duty to insure the building
• 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

A defective lease will likely cause issues when trying to sell a property primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. HSBC Bank, Barnsley Building Society, and Bank of Ireland all have very detailed requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is problematic they may refuse to grant the mortgage, obliging the buyer to withdraw.

I bought a 1 bedroom flat in Rochdale, conveyancing formalities finalised 10 years ago. How much will my lease extension cost? Equivalent properties in Rochdale with over 90 years remaining are worth £209,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £60 per annum. The lease ceases on 21st October 2104

With 78 years unexpired we estimate the price of your lease extension to be between £9,500 and £11,000 plus legals.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to provide the actual costs without more comprehensive investigations. You should 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 you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action placing reliance on this information before getting professional advice.