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

Notwithstanding that your last Shotton conveyancing lawyer is not available you can check your lease to see if it allows you to sublet the premises. The rule is that if the deeds are silent, subletting is permitted. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you need to obtain permission from your landlord or some other party in advance of subletting. This means you not allowed to sublet without first obtaining permission. The consent is not allowed to be unreasonably withheld. If the lease prohibits you from letting out the property you will need to ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

I am looking at a couple of maisonettes in Shotton both have in the region of forty five years left on the leases. Do I need to be concerned?

There are no two ways about it. A leasehold apartment in Shotton is a wasting asset as a result of the shortening lease. The closer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it reduces the value of the premises. For most buyers and banks, leases with under eighty years become less and less marketable. 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 premises 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 Shotton 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 the agreed 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 employed by a long established estate agency in Shotton where we have experienced a few leasehold sales jeopardised due to short leases. I have been given contradictory information from local Shotton conveyancing firms. Can you shed some light as to whether the vendor of a flat can initiate the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

As long as 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 buyer can avoid having to wait 2 years for a lease extension. 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 disposal of the property.

An alternative approach is to agree the lease extension with the freeholder 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.

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Shotton from the point of view of expediting the sale process?

• Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Shotton can be bypassed where you get in touch lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and ask them to put together the leasehold information needed by the buyers solicitors.
• If you have carried out any alterations to the premises would they have required Landlord’s approval? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Shotton leases often stipulate that internal structural changes or addition of wooden flooring necessitate a licence issued by the Landlord consenting to such works. Should you fail to have the paperwork to hand you should not contact the landlord without contacting your solicitor first.
• Some Shotton leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, it would be prudent to notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. The bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is financially capable of paying the annual service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their solicitors.
• If you have had any disputes with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved prior to the flat being marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where there is a current dispute. You may need to swallow your pride and discharge any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to present the dispute as historic as opposed to unsettled.
• If you have the benefit of shareholding in the Management Company, you should make sure that you hold the original share certificate. Obtaining a new share certificate is often a time consuming formality and slows down many a Shotton conveyancing transaction. Where a reissued share is needed, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (where applicable) for this sooner rather than later.

What are the common deficiencies that you encounter in leases for Shotton properties?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Shotton. All leases is drafted differently and drafting errors can result in certain clauses are wrong. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the premises
• Insurance obligations
• A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

You will 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. Lloyds TSB Bank, Norwich and Peterborough Building Society, and Britannia 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 problematic they may refuse to provide security, forcing the purchaser to pull out.

I invested in buying a 1st floor flat in Shotton, conveyancing having been completed in 2010. How much will my lease extension cost? Similar properties in Shotton with a long lease are worth £265,000. The ground rent is £45 invoiced annually. The lease expires on 21st October 2101

You have 75 years unexpired we estimate the price of your lease extension to range between £10,500 and £12,000 as well as professional fees.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of comprehensive due diligence. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be additional concerns 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 seeking the advice of a professional.