Helen (my wife) and I may need to let out our St Austell garden flat for a while due to a career opportunity. We used a St Austell conveyancing firm in 2002 but they have since shut and we did not think at the time get any guidance as to whether the lease prohibits the subletting of the flat. How do we find out?

Notwithstanding that your previous St Austell conveyancing solicitor is no longer around you can check your lease to check 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 are obliged to obtain permission via your landlord or other appropriate person in advance of subletting. The net result is that you cannot sublet without first obtaining consent. Such consent is not allowed to be unreasonably turned down. If your lease prohibits you from letting out the property you should ask your landlord for their consent.

I've found a house that appears to tick a lot of boxes, at a great price which is making it more attractive. I have subsequently found out that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are issues buying a house with a leasehold title in St Austell. Conveyancing solicitors have are about to be appointed. Will my lawyers set out the risks of buying a leasehold house in St Austell ?

Most houses in St Austell are freehold and not leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer used to dealing with such properties who can assist with the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are buying in St Austell so you should seriously consider looking for a St Austell conveyancing practitioner and be sure that they have experience in dealing with leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. As a tenant you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions for example requiring the landlord’spermission to carry out alterations. You may also be required to pay a contribution towards the maintenance of the communal areas where the property is located on an estate. Your solicitor should report to you on the legal implications.

I work for a long established estate agency in St Austell where we see a few flat sales put at risk as a result of short leases. I have received contradictory information from local St Austell conveyancing firms. Could you clarify whether the seller of a flat can initiate the lease extension process for the buyer?

As long as 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. The benefit of this is that the buyer need not have to sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed before, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.

Alternatively, it may be possible 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 St Austell conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a conveyancer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a St Austell conveyancing firm) it is imperative that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We recommend that you make enquires with several firms including non St Austell conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions could be useful:

• If they are not ALEP accredited then what is the reason?
• How many lease extensions have they completed in St Austell in the last year?

All being well we will complete the disposal of our £ 450000 flat in St Austell in just under a week. The management company 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 St Austell?

St Austell conveyancing on leasehold apartments often requires the purchaser’s solicitor sending enquiries for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is not legally bound to address such questions most will be willing to assist. They are entitled invoice a reasonable charge for responding to questions or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average fee for the information that you are referring to is £350, in some cases it is above £800. The management information fee demanded by the landlord must be accompanied by a synopsis of entitlements and obligations in relation to administration charges, without which the charge is technically not due. Reality however dictates that one has no option but to pay whatever is requested of you should you wish to exchange contracts with the buyer.

I inherited a 1st floor flat in St Austell, conveyancing was carried out half a dozen years ago. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Corresponding flats in St Austell with a long lease are worth £265,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £65 levied per year. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2079

With just 53 years unexpired we estimate the premium for your lease extension to span between £31,400 and £36,200 plus 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 advice on a more accurate figure without more detailed investigations. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other issues that need to be taken into account and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward based on this information without first getting professional advice.