I am intending to rent out my leasehold apartment in Tibshelf. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask her. Do I need to ask my freeholder for their consent?

A lease governs relations between the landlord and you the leaseholder; specifically, it will set out if subletting is prohibited, or permitted but only subject to certain caveats. The rule is that if the lease contains no specific ban or restriction, subletting is allowed. The majority of leases in Tibshelf do not prevent an absolute prevention of subletting – such a provision would adversely affect the market value the property. Instead, there is usually a basic requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly sending a duplicate of the sublease.

I own a leasehold flat in Tibshelf. Conveyancing and Aldermore mortgage are in place. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1993. The conveyancing solicitor in Tibshelf who acted for me is not around.What should I do?

First contact HMLR to make sure that this person is indeed the new freeholder. You do not need to instruct a Tibshelf conveyancing solicitor to do this as it can be done on-line for £3. You should note that in any event, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I am looking at a couple of apartments in Tibshelf which have approximately 50 years unexpired on the lease term. Do I need to be concerned?

A lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the property for a period of time. As the lease gets shorter the marketability of the lease deteriorate and it becomes more expensive to extend the lease. For this reason it is advisable to increase the term of the lease. Sometimes it is difficult to sell a property with a short lease as mortgage lenders less inclined to grant a loan on such properties. Lease extension can be a protracted process. We advise that you seek professional help from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this arena

Last month I purchased a leasehold house in Tibshelf. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before my ownership?

In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. However, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to ensure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.

If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).

What advice can you give us when it comes to choosing a Tibshelf conveyancing firm to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

When appointing a property lawyer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Tibshelf conveyancing practice) it is essential that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We recommend that you talk with two or three firms including non Tibshelf conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions could be of use:

• How experienced is the practice with lease extension legislation?
• How many lease extensions has the firm conducted in Tibshelf in the last twenty four months?

I inherited a garden flat in Tibshelf, conveyancing having been completed 4 years ago. Can you shed any light on how much the price could be for a 90 year extension to my lease? Comparable properties in Tibshelf with over 90 years remaining are worth £167,000. The ground rent is £65 levied per year. The lease expires on 21st October 2083

You have 57 years left to run we estimate the price of your lease extension to range between £26,600 and £30,800 as well as professional fees.

The figure above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs without more comprehensive due diligence. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be other issues that need to be considered and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action based on this information without first getting professional advice.