My partner and I may need to let out our Sandwich 1st floor flat temporarily due to a new job. We used a Sandwich conveyancing practice in 2001 but they have closed and we did not think at the time seek any advice as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?

Even though your last Sandwich conveyancing solicitor is not available you can review your lease to check if it allows you to sublet the premises. The rule is that if the lease is non-specific, subletting is permitted. There may be a precondition that you are obliged to seek consent from your landlord or other appropriate person before subletting. This means you not allowed to sublet without first obtaining consent. Such consent is not allowed to be unreasonably withheld. If the lease does not allow you to sublet you will need to ask your landlord for their consent.

Due to exchange soon on a garden flat in Sandwich. Conveyancing lawyers assured me that they report fully next week. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

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

• You should be sent a copy of the lease

I today plan to offer on a house that appears to tick a lot of boxes, at a great figure which is making it more attractive. I have since discovered that the title is leasehold as opposed to freehold. I am assuming that there are issues purchasing a house with a leasehold title in Sandwich. Conveyancing lawyers have are soon to be instructed. Will they explain the issues?

Most houses in Sandwich are freehold and not leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local solicitor used to dealing with such properties who can help the conveyancing process. it is apparent that you are purchasing in Sandwich in which case you should be looking for a Sandwich conveyancing solicitor and be sure 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 for example obtaining the landlord’spermission to conduct changes to the property. You may also be required to pay a contribution towards the maintenance of the estate where the property is part of an estate. Your lawyer should appraise you on the various issues.

I am looking at a couple of maisonettes in Sandwich which have in the region of fifty years remaining on the lease term. Will this present a problem?

There are no two ways about it. A leasehold flat in Sandwich is a deteriorating asset as a result of the shortening lease. The nearer the lease gets to its expiry date, the more it reduces the value of the premises. The majority of buyers and lenders, leases with less than 75 years become less and less attractive. On a more positive note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the property for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of premises with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Sandwich conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. A more straightforward and quicker method of extending would be to contact your landlord directly and sound him out on the prospect of extending the lease They may agree to a smaller lump sum and an increase in the ground rent, but to shorter extension terms in return. You need to ensure that any new terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.

I am a negotiator for a long established estate agency in Sandwich where we see a number of flat sales put at risk due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Sandwich conveyancing solicitors. Could you shed some light as to whether the seller of a flat can start 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. The benefit of this is that the buyer can avoid having to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed before, or simultaneously with 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 buyer.

I purchased a garden flat in Sandwich, conveyancing formalities finalised 7 years ago. Can you shed any light on how much the price could be for a 90 year extension to my lease? Similar properties in Sandwich with over 90 years remaining are worth £248,000. The ground rent is £45 yearly. The lease finishes on 21st October 2091

With just 66 years left to run the likely cost is going to be between £17,100 and £19,800 as well as legals.

The figure above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to provide the actual costs without more comprehensive investigations. Do not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt additional concerns that need to be considered and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward based on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Sandwich