I am intending to sublet my leasehold flat in Sea Mills. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask her. Do I need to ask my freeholder for permission?

A lease governs relations between the freeholder and you the flat owner; specifically, it will indicate if subletting is banned, or permitted but only subject to certain conditions. The rule is that if the lease contains no expres ban or restriction, subletting is allowed. Most leases in Sea Mills do not contain an absolute prevention of subletting – such a provision would adversely affect the market value the flat. In most cases there is simply a requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly sending a copy of the sublease.

I work for a busy estate agent office in Sea Mills where we see a few leasehold sales put at risk due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given conflicting advice from local Sea Mills conveyancing firms. Can you clarify whether the seller of a flat can initiate the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the proposed purchaser can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done prior to, or at the same time as completion of the sale.

Alternatively, it may be possible 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 purchaser.

Can you offer any advice when it comes to choosing a Sea Mills conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?

When appointing a solicitor for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Sea Mills conveyancing practice) it is imperative that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We suggested that you talk with two or three firms including non Sea Mills conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions could be of use:

• If the firm is not ALEP accredited then what is the reason?

Can they put you in touch with client in Sea Mills who can give a testimonial?

Completion in due on our sale of a £450000 apartment in Sea Mills on Wednesday in a week. The freeholder has quoted £384 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and previous years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Sea Mills?

Sea Mills conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes ordinarily involves fees being invoiced by management companies :

• Answering pre-exchange enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in Sea Mills
• 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 Sea Mills leasehold property is £350. For Sea Mills 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 obliged to provide the information.

What are the frequently found deficiencies that you witness in leases for Sea Mills properties?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Sea Mills. All leases are unique and legal mistakes in the legal wording can result in certain clauses are erroneous. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• A provision to repair to or maintain elements of the building
• Insurance obligations
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

You may have a problem when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Nationwide Building Society, Coventry Building Society, and TSB all have express conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is defective they may refuse to provide security, obliging the buyer to pull out.

I inherited a 1st floor flat in Sea Mills, conveyancing having been completed 10 years ago. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Comparable properties in Sea Mills with over 90 years remaining are worth £266,000. The ground rent is £45 invoiced every year. The lease terminates on 21st October 2074

With just 50 years left to run we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £35,200 and £40,600 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs without more comprehensive due diligence. Do not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt other issues that need to be taken into account and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward based on this information without first getting professional advice.

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Lease Extensions in Sea Mills