I am intending to sublet my leasehold flat in Stapleton. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask him. Is permission from the freeholder required?

The lease governs relations between the freeholder and you the leaseholder; in particular, it will say if subletting is not allowed, or permitted but only subject to certain caveats. The rule is that if the lease contains no specific ban or restriction, subletting is permitted. The majority of leases in Stapleton do not contain strict prohibition on subletting – such a provision would undoubtedly devalue the flat. Instead, there is usually a basic requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly sending a duplicate of the tenancy agreement.

I am hoping to complete next month on a basement flat in Stapleton. Conveyancing solicitors assured me that they report fully on Monday. What should I be looking out for?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Stapleton should include some of the following:

• Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, landlord
• Setting out your legal entitlements in relation to the communal areas in the building.For example, does the lease provide for a right of way over an accessway or staircase?
• Does the lease prohibit wood flooring?
• You must be told what constitutes a Nuisance in the lease
• An explanation as to the provision in the lease to pay service charges - with regard to both the building, and the more general rights a leaseholder has
• Repair and maintenance of the flat
• What you can do if a neighbour breach a clause of their lease?

I am looking at a couple of flats in Stapleton which have in the region of forty five years left on the lease term. Do I need to be concerned?

A lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the premises for a prescribed time frame. As the lease gets shorter the marketability of the lease deteriorate and it becomes more costly to acquire a lease extension. This is why it is generally wise to extend the lease term. Sometimes it is difficult to sell a property with a short lease because mortgage companies may be reluctant to lend money on properties of this type. Lease extension can be a difficult process. We advise that you seek professional help from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this arena

What advice can you give us when it comes to finding a Stapleton conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a property lawyer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Stapleton conveyancing practice) it is most important that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We suggested that you make enquires with several firms including non Stapleton conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions could be useful:

• Can they put you in touch with client in Stapleton who can give a testimonial?
• What are the charges for lease extension conveyancing?

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Stapleton with the intention of expediting the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Stapleton can be reduced where you instruct lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and ask them to put together the leasehold information needed by the purchasers’ representatives.
• The majority freeholders or managing agents in Stapleton levy fees for providing management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should find out the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack sought on or before finding a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The typical amount of time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most common reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Stapleton.
• A minority of Stapleton leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. Any bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are financially capable of paying the yearly 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 before the property is marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where a dispute is unresolved. You may need to swallow your pride and pay any arrears of service charge or settle 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 will still have to reveal details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as historic as opposed to unresolved.
• You may think that you are aware of the number of years left on your lease but it would be wise to double-check via your lawyers. A buyer’s lawyer will not be happy to advise their client to where the lease term is under 75 years. It is therefore important at an as soon as possible that you consider whether the lease for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

Stapleton Leasehold Conveyancing - Sample of Queries Prior to buying

You should be aware that where the lease has no more than eighty years it will impact the marketability of the flat. Check with your lender that they are content with remaining years on the lease. A short lease means that you will almost definitely have to extend the lease at some point and it is worth finding out how much this will be. Remember, in most cases you will need to own the premises for two years before you are legally able to extend the lease. Many Stapleton leasehold properties will have a service bill for maintenance of the block levied by the freeholder. Where you acquire the flat you will have to meet this contribution, usually periodically throughout the year. This can vary from a couple of hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for large purpose-built buildings. There will also be a rentcharge to be met annual, normally this is not a exorbitant figure, say approximately £50-£100 but you need to enquire it because on occasion it could be prohibitively expensive. The best form of lease arrangement is a share of the freehold. In this situation the tenants enjoy being in charge if their destiny and notwithstanding that a managing agent is usually employed if the building is larger than a house conversion, the managing agent acts for the leaseholders themselves.