I wish to let out my leasehold apartment in Tickton. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask him. Do I need to ask my freeholder for permission?

Even though your last Tickton conveyancing solicitor is not available you can check your lease to check if you are permitted to let out the apartment. The rule is that if the lease is non-specific, subletting is allowed. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you are obliged to obtain permission via your landlord or other appropriate person in advance of subletting. The net result is you not allowed to sublet without first obtaining permission. The consent is not allowed to be unreasonably turned down. If your lease prohibits you from letting out the property you will need to ask your landlord for their consent.

I have just started marketing my garden apartment in Tickton.Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon but I have just had a quarterly service charge demand – what should I do?

The sensible thing to do is pay the invoice 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 managing agents 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've recently bought a leasehold property in Tickton. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to 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. It is an essential part 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).

I am a negotiator for a reputable estate agent office in Tickton where we have witnessed a few leasehold sales jeopardised as a result of short leases. I have been given conflicting advice from local Tickton conveyancing firms. Please can you confirm whether the seller of a flat can commence 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 commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means 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 has to be done prior to, 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.

Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on the sale of our £ 400000 maisonette in Tickton in seven days. The managing agents has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and previous years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge an administration fee for a flat conveyance in Tickton?

Tickton conveyancing on leasehold flats normally results in fees being raised by landlords agents :

• Answering conveyancing due diligence questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Tickton
• Supplying insurance information
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your conveyancer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Tickton leasehold premises is £350. For Tickton conveyancing transactions it is customary for the seller to pay for these costs. The landlord or their agents are under no legal obligation to answer such questions most will be willing to do so - albeit often at exorbitant prices where the fees bear little relation to the work involved. Unfortunately there is no law that requires fixed charges for administrative tasks. Neither is there any legal time frame by which they are obliged to provide the information.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Tickton - Examples of Questions you should ask before buying

Most Tickton leasehold flats will have a service charge for the upkeep of the building invoiced on behalf of the freeholder. Where you buy the apartment you will have to meet this amount, normally quarterly throughout the year. This may vary from several hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for bigger purpose-built blocks. In all probability there will be a ground rent for you to pay yearly, this is usually not a significant amount, say approximately £25-£75 but you need to check it because sometimes it could be many hundreds of pounds. How much is the ground rent and service charge? This information is important as a) areas could cause problems in the block as the communal areas may begin to deteriorate if repairs remain unpaid b) if the tenants have an issue with the managing agents you will wish to have full disclosure