Jane (my partner) and I may need to rent out our Sawston ground floor flat temporarily due to taking a sabbatical. We instructed a Sawston conveyancing firm in 2004 but they have since shut and we did not have the foresight to seek any guidance as to whether the lease prohibits the subletting of the flat. How do we find out?

Notwithstanding that your last Sawston conveyancing solicitor is not available you can check your lease to see if you are permitted to let out the premises. The rule is that if the deeds are non-specific, subletting is permitted. There may be a precondition that you need to obtain permission via your landlord or other appropriate person prior to subletting. The net result is you not allowed to sublet without first obtaining permission. The consent is not allowed to be unreasonably turned down. If the lease does not allow you to sublet you should ask your landlord for their consent.

Looking forward to exchange soon on a leasehold property in Sawston. Conveyancing solicitors assured me that they report fully tomorrow. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

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

• Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, freeholder

Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my garden apartment in Sawston.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just had a quarterly service charge demand – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

The sensible thing to do is discharge the invoice as normal because all ground rent and service charges will be apportioned on completion, so you will be reimbursed by the buyer for the period running from after the completion date to the next payment date. Most management companies will not acknowledge the buyer unless the service charges have been paid and are up to date so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

I am attracted to a couple of apartments in Sawston which have in the region of 50 years left on the leases. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

There are plenty of short leases in Sawston. The lease is a right to use the premises for a period of time. As the lease gets shorter the marketability of the lease reduces and it becomes more costly to acquire a lease extension. For this reason it is advisable to extend the lease term. It is often difficult to sell a property with a short lease because mortgage companies less inclined to grant a loan on such properties. Lease enfranchisement can be a protracted process. We recommend you get professional assistance from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this arena

In relation to leasehold conveyancing in Sawston what are the most frequent lease problems?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Sawston. Most leases are individual and drafting errors can result in certain sections are wrong. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• A provision to repair to or maintain parts of the premises
• 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

A defective lease will likely cause problems when trying to sell a property primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Barclays , The Royal Bank of Scotland, and Britannia all have very detailed conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is problematic they may refuse to grant the mortgage, obliging the purchaser to pull out.

I inherited a ground floor flat in Sawston, conveyancing formalities finalised in 1995. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Comparable properties in Sawston with a long lease are worth £208,000. The ground rent is £45 charged once a year. The lease expires on 21st October 2084

With just 59 years left to run we estimate the price of your lease extension to range between £22,800 and £26,400 as well as plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

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 tribunal or court proceedings. There may be additional concerns that need to be taken into account and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward based on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Sawston