My husband and I may need to rent out our Sedbergh basement flat temporarily due to a new job. We used a Sedbergh conveyancing firm in 2003 but they have since shut and we did not think at the time get any advice as to whether the lease prohibits the subletting of the flat. How do we find out?

A lease dictates relations between the landlord and you the flat owner; in particular, it will set out if subletting is not allowed, or permitted but only subject to certain conditions. The accepted inference is that if the lease contains no specific ban or restriction, subletting is permitted. Most leases in Sedbergh do not contain an absolute prevention of subletting – such a provision would adversely affect the market value the property. Instead, there is usually simply a requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly sending a duplicate of the tenancy agreement.

I have just started marketing my garden flat in Sedbergh.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just received a quarterly maintenance charge demand – what should I do?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should clear 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 managing agents will not acknowledge the buyer until 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've found a house that appears to be perfect, at a reasonable price which is making it all the more appealing. I have subsequently discovered that it's a leasehold as opposed to freehold. I am assuming that there are issues purchasing a leasehold house in Sedbergh. Conveyancing advisers have are soon to be appointed. Will my lawyers set out the risks of buying a leasehold house in Sedbergh ?

The majority of houses in Sedbergh are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can assist with the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are buying in Sedbergh so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Sedbergh conveyancing practitioner and check that they have experience in transacting on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. Being a leaseholder you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want to the property. The lease will likely included provisions for example requiring the landlord’sconsent to conduct changes to the property. You may also be required to pay a contribution towards the maintenance of the estate where the house is located on an estate. Your conveyancer will appraise you on the various issues.

I am employed by a long established estate agency in Sedbergh where we see a number of leasehold sales jeopardised due to short leases. I have received conflicting advice from local Sedbergh conveyancing firms. Could you clarify whether the owner of a flat can start the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

Provided that the seller has been the owner 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. This means that the proposed purchaser need not have to wait 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 simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.

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.

If all goes to plan we aim to complete the sale of our £ 325000 apartment in Sedbergh in just under a week. The freeholder has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and previous years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in Sedbergh?

Sedbergh conveyancing on leasehold flats usually results in fees being levied by landlords agents :

• Addressing pre-contract questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Sedbergh
• Supplying insurance information
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your conveyancer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Sedbergh leasehold premises is £350. For Sedbergh 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.

I inherited a 1 bedroom flat in Sedbergh, conveyancing having been completed in 2010. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Equivalent flats in Sedbergh with a long lease are worth £227,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £55 per annum. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2088

With only 62 years left to run we estimate the premium for your lease extension to range between £19,000 and £22,000 as well as costs.

The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs without more detailed investigations. Do not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt 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 take any other action based on this information before getting professional advice.