Harry (my fiance) and I may need to let out our Spalding garden flat for a while due to taking a sabbatical. We used a Spalding conveyancing firm in 2002 but they have since shut and we did not think at the time seek any guidance as to whether the lease prohibits the subletting of the flat. How do we find out?

A small minority of properties in Spalding do contain a provision to say that subletting is only permitted with prior consent from the landlord. The landlord is not entitled to unreasonably refuse but, in such cases, they would need to see references. Experience suggests that problems are usually caused by unsatisfactory tenants rather than owner-occupiers and for that reason you can expect the freeholder to take up the references and consider them carefully before granting consent.

Back In 2007, I bought a leasehold flat in Spalding. Conveyancing and Chelsea Building Society mortgage went though with no issue. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1994. The conveyancing solicitor in Spalding who acted for me is not around.Any advice?

First make enquiries of the Land Registry to make sure that this person is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. It is not necessary to instruct a Spalding conveyancing practitioner to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for £3. You should note that regardless, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

I am a negotiator for a busy estate agent office in Spalding where we have witnessed a number of flat sales put at risk due to short leases. I have received inconsistent advice from local Spalding conveyancing firms. Please can you shed some light as to whether the vendor of a flat can initiate the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

Provided that the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the buyer need not have to sit tight for 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 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 offer any advice when it comes to choosing a Spalding conveyancing firm to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

If you are instructing a property lawyer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Spalding conveyancing practice) it is imperative that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We recommend that you talk with several firms including non Spalding conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions could be helpful:

• How experienced is the practice with lease extension legislation?

What are the common deficiencies that you see in leases for Spalding properties?

Leasehold conveyancing in Spalding is not unique. All leases is drafted differently and legal mistakes in the legal wording can result in certain sections are missing. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain elements of the property
• A duty to insure the building
• 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

You could encounter a problem when selling your property if you have a defective lease as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Barclays , Bank of Scotland, and Britannia all have express requirements 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 buyer to pull out.

Spalding Leasehold Conveyancing - Sample of Queries before buying

Is there a share of the freehold? This information is useful as a) areas may result in problems in the block as the communal areas may begin to deteriorate where maintenance remain unpaid b) if the tenants have a dispute with the managing agents you will need to know about it Generally speaking the cost for major works tend not to be included within service charges, although some managing agents in Spalding ask leaseholders to pay into a sinking fund created for the specific intention of establishing a fund for major works.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Spalding