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

Even though your last Topsham conveyancing lawyer is not around you can check your lease to see if you are permitted to let out the property. The accepted inference is that if the deeds are non-specific, subletting is permitted. There may be a precondition that you need to seek permission from your landlord or other appropriate person prior to subletting. This means you not allowed to sublet without first obtaining permission. The consent is not allowed to be unreasonably withheld. If your lease does not allow you to sublet you should ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

I only have Sixty One years left on my flat in Topsham. I now wish to get lease extension but my landlord is can not be found. What options are available to me?

If you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be granted an extra 90 years by the Court. However, you will be required to prove that you have made all reasonable attempts to find the freeholder. For most situations a specialist should be useful to carry out a search and to produce an expert document which can be used as evidence that the freeholder can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer both on devolving into the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court covering Topsham.

Due to complete next month on a studio apartment in Topsham. Conveyancing solicitors have said that they will have a report out to me next week. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

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

• The total extent of the demise. This will be the apartment itself but could also include a roof space or cellar if appropriate.
• Will you be prohibited or prevented from having pets in the property?
• Whether the lease restricts you from letting out the property, or having a home office for business
• You should have a good understanding of the insurance provisions
• I don't know whether the lease allows me to alter or improve anything in the flat - you should know whether it applies to all alterations or just structural alteration, and whether consent is required
• Responsibility for repairing the window frames

I am employed by a long established estate agent office in Topsham where we have witnessed a few flat sales put at risk due to short leases. I have received conflicting advice from local Topsham conveyancing firms. Can you clarify whether the seller of a flat can start the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

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 can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done prior to, or at the same time as completion of the sale.

An alternative approach is 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.

Are there frequently found defects that you see in leases for Topsham properties?

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

• A provision to repair to or maintain parts of the building
• Insurance obligations
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

A defective lease can cause problems when trying to sell a property primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Lloyds TSB Bank, The Royal Bank of Scotland, and Clydesdale all have very detailed 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 problematic they may refuse to grant the mortgage, obliging the purchaser to pull out.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Topsham - A selection of Queries before Purchasing

In the main the cost for major works are not included within service charges, albeit that some managing agents in Topsham ask tenants to pay into a reserve fund created for the specific intention of establishing a fund for major works. This question is important as a) areas may result in problems for the block as the common areas may begin to deteriorate if maintenance remain unpaid b) if the leasehold owners have a dispute with the running of the building you will wish to have complete disclosure