My husband and I may need to let out our Taverham basement flat temporarily due to a new job. We instructed a Taverham conveyancing firm in 2002 but they have closed and we did not have the foresight to seek any advice as to whether the lease permits subletting. How do we find out?

Notwithstanding that your last Taverham conveyancing solicitor is no longer around you can review your lease to check if it allows you to sublet the property. The accepted inference is that if the lease is silent, subletting is permitted. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you must seek consent via your landlord or some other party before subletting. The net result is you not allowed to sublet in the absence of prior permission. Such consent is not allowed to be unreasonably turned down. If the lease does not allow you to sublet you will need to ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

I’m about to sell my basement flat in Taverham.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just received a half-yearly maintenance charge demand – Do I pay up?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should clear the service charge as normal because all ground rent and service charges will be apportioned on completion, so you will be reimbursed by the buyer for the period running from after the completion date to the next payment date. Most management companies will not acknowledge the buyer until the service charges have been paid and are up to date so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that appears to be perfect, at a great price which is making it all the more appealing. I have just discovered that the title is leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are issues buying a house with a leasehold title in Taverham. Conveyancing solicitors have not yet been instructed. Will my lawyers set out the risks of buying a leasehold house in Taverham ?

The majority of houses in Taverham are freehold rather than leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer used to dealing with such properties who can help the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are buying in Taverham so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Taverham conveyancing practitioner and be sure that they are used to transacting on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. Being a leaseholder you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions for example obtaining the landlord’spermission to carry out changes to the property. You may also be required to pay a service charge towards the upkeep of the communal areas where the property is located on an estate. Your conveyancer will appraise you on the various issues.

I am employed by a busy estate agent office in Taverham where we see a few flat sales derailed as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received inconsistent advice from local Taverham conveyancing solicitors. Please can you shed some light as to whether the owner of a flat can initiate the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

Provided that the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to 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 wait 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 disposal of the property.

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 purchaser.

What are your top tips when it comes to finding a Taverham conveyancing firm to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

When appointing a property lawyer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Taverham conveyancing firm) 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 speak with two or three firms including non Taverham conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions might be helpful:

• If they are not ALEP accredited then why not?

Taverham Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Queries Prior to Purchasing

It is important to be aware whether fixing the lift or some other significant cost is coming up that will be shared by the tenants and will materially increase the the maintenance charges or necessitate a specific invoice. Does the lease have in excess of 82 years remaining? Are any of leasehold owners in arrears of their service charge payments?

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Taverham