Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Stroud. Before I set the wheels in motion I would like to find out the unexpired term of the lease.

Assuming the lease is recorded at the land registry - and most are in Stroud - then the leasehold title will always include the basic details of the lease, namely the date; the term; and the original parties. From a conveyancing perspective such details then enable any prospective buyer and lender to confirm that any lease they are looking at is the one relevant to that title.For any other purpose, such as confirming how long the term was granted for and calculating what is left, then the register should be sufficient on it's own.

I wish to sublet my leasehold flat in Stroud. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask him. Do I need to ask my freeholder for their consent?

The lease governs the relationship between the freeholder and you the leaseholder; specifically, it will say if subletting is banned, or permitted but only subject to certain caveats. The accepted inference is that if the lease contains no expres ban or restriction, subletting is allowed. The majority of leases in Stroud do not contain an absolute prevention of subletting – such a clause would undoubtedly devalue the property. In most cases there is simply a requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly sending a copy of the sublease.

I work for a reputable estate agent office in Stroud where we see a number of flat sales derailed due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received contradictory information from local Stroud conveyancing solicitors. Please can you confirm whether the owner of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities 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 commence 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 for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or at the same time as completion of the sale.

An alternative approach is 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 buyer.

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Stroud with the purpose of expediting the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Stroud can be reduced where you appoint lawyers the minute your agents start marketing the property and request that they start 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 permission? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Stroud leases often stipulate that internal structural changes or addition of wooden flooring calls for a licence from the Landlord consenting to such alterations. Should you fail to have the consents to hand do not communicate with the landlord without checking with your conveyancer in the first instance.

When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Stroud what are the most frequent lease problems?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Stroud. Most leases is drafted differently and drafting errors can sometimes mean that certain sections are missing. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the building
• Insurance obligations
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

A defective lease will likely cause issues when trying to sell a property as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Lloyds TSB Bank, Bank of Scotland, and Alliance & Leicester 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 defective they may refuse to provide security, forcing the purchaser to withdraw.

I am the registered owner of a ground floor flat in Stroud, conveyancing was carried out 8 years ago. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Corresponding properties in Stroud with an extended lease are worth £187,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 invoiced annually. The lease ceases on 21st October 2081

You have 56 years left to run we estimate the premium for your lease extension to range between £27,600 and £31,800 as well as professional fees.

The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to provide the actual costs without more comprehensive investigations. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be other concerns 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 before seeking the advice of a professional.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Stroud