My fiance and I may need to let out our Saltney ground floor flat for a while due to a new job. We used a Saltney conveyancing firm in 2003 but they have since shut and we did not think at the time seek any advice as to whether the lease permits subletting. How do we find out?

A small minority of properties in Saltney do contain a provision to say that subletting is only permitted with prior consent from the landlord. The landlord is not entitled to unreasonably withhold but, in such cases, they would need to review references. Experience dictates 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 consent.

There are only 62 years remaining on my lease in Saltney. I now wish to extend my lease but my freeholder is can not be found. What are my options?

On the basis that you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be granted an extra 90 years by the Court. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you have done all that could be expected to find the freeholder. In some cases an enquiry agent should be useful to try and locate and to produce a report which can be used as proof that the freeholder can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a property lawyer both on devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Saltney.

I own a leasehold house in Saltney. Conveyancing and Virgin Money mortgage went though with no issue. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1994. The conveyancing practitioner in Saltney who acted for me is not around.What should I do?

The first thing you should do is make enquiries of HMLR to be sure that this person is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. There is no need to incur the fees of a Saltney conveyancing lawyer to do this as it can be done on-line for less than a fiver. Rest assured that regardless, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

Last month I purchased a leasehold property in Saltney. 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. 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).

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Saltney from the perspective of saving time on the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Saltney can be avoided where you instruct lawyers as soon as you market your property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information needed by the buyers solicitors.
• Many freeholders or Management Companies in Saltney levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack can be applied for as soon as you have a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The typical amount of time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most frequent reason for frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Saltney.

I am the registered owner of a leasehold flat in Saltney, conveyancing formalities finalised in 2012. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Comparable properties in Saltney with over 90 years remaining are worth £174,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £60 invoiced every year. The lease ceases on 21st October 2099

With just 74 years unexpired we estimate the premium for your lease extension to be between £11,400 and £13,200 as well as plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The suggested premium range above 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. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt additional issues that need to be considered and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward based on this information without first getting professional advice.

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Lease Extensions in Saltney