My partner and I may need to let out our Ruthin garden flat temporarily due to taking a sabbatical. We instructed a Ruthin conveyancing firm in 2004 but they have closed and we did not have the foresight to get any guidance as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?

Notwithstanding that your last Ruthin conveyancing lawyer is no longer around you can review your lease to see if you are permitted to let out the property. The rule is that if the deeds are non-specific, subletting is allowed. There may be a precondition that you need to seek permission 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 withheld. If your lease does not allow you to sublet you will need to ask your landlord for their consent.

I've found a house that seems to tick a lot of boxes, at a reasonable figure which is making it more attractive. I have since found out that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are particular concerns purchasing a house with a leasehold title in Ruthin. Conveyancing lawyers have are about to be instructed. Will my lawyers set out the implications of buying a leasehold house in Ruthin ?

Most houses in Ruthin are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area can help the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are purchasing in Ruthin in which case you should be looking for a Ruthin conveyancing practitioner and check that they have experience in advising on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the unexpired lease term. Being a leaseholder you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions such as requiring the landlord’spermission to carry out alterations. It may be necessary to pay a service charge towards the upkeep of the communal areas where the property is part of an estate. Your lawyer should advise you fully on all the issues.

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a couple of flats in Ruthin which have approximately forty five years left on the lease term. Will this present a problem?

There are plenty of short leases in Ruthin. The lease is a right to use the property for a prescribed time frame. As a lease shortens the value of the lease decreases and results in it becoming more expensive to extend the lease. This is why it is generally wise to extend the lease term. More often than not it is difficult to sell a property with a short lease as mortgage companies may be reluctant to lend money on properties of this type. Lease enfranchisement can be a protracted process. We recommend you get professional help from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this area

Last month I purchased a leasehold flat in Ruthin. Do I have any liability for service charges relating to a period prior to my ownership?

Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner 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. It is an essential part 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).

All being well we will complete our sale of a £450000 apartment in Ruthin in 10 days. The freeholder has quoted £384 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and 3 years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge such fees for a leasehold conveyance in Ruthin?

For the majority of leasehold sales in Ruthin conveyancing will involve, questions about the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :

• Addressing pre-exchange questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Ruthin
• Copies of the building insurance and schedule
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your lawyer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Ruthin leasehold premises is £350. For Ruthin conveyancing transactions it is customary for the seller to pay for these costs. The landlord or their agents are under no legal obligation to answer such questions most will be willing to do so - albeit often at exorbitant prices where the fees bear little relation to the work involved. Unfortunately there is no law that requires fixed charges for administrative tasks. Neither is there any legal time frame by which they are required to supply the information.

Ruthin Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Questions you should consider Prior to Purchasing

What prohibitions exist in the Ruthin Lease? Are any of leasehold owners in dispute over their service charge payments? The majority of Ruthin leasehold apartments will have a service charge for the upkeep of the block levied on behalf of the freeholder. Where you purchase the property you will have to meet this liability, normally periodically throughout the year. This may be anything from a few hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for blocks with lifts and large common areas. In all likelihood there will be a rentcharge for you to pay annual, this is usually not a significant amount, say around £25-£75 but you need to check it because occasionally it can be many hundreds of pounds.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Ruthin