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

Even though your last Walderslade conveyancing lawyer is not available you can check your lease to see if it allows you to sublet the apartment. The accepted inference is that if the lease is silent, subletting is permitted. There may be a precondition that you need to seek permission from your landlord or some other party prior to subletting. This means that you cannot sublet in the absence of prior permission. Such consent is not allowed to be unreasonably refused ore delayed. If the lease prohibits you from subletting the property you should ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

I have recently realised that I have 62 years left on my lease in Walderslade. I now want to extend my lease but my freeholder is missing. What should I do?

If you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be lengthened by the Court. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you have done all that could be expected to locate the freeholder. For most situations an enquiry agent would be useful to conduct investigations and to produce an expert document to be used as evidence that the freeholder can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a property lawyer in relation to proving the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court overseeing Walderslade.

I am looking at a couple of flats in Walderslade both have in the region of forty five years unexpired on the lease term. Will this present a problem?

There is no doubt about it. A leasehold flat in Walderslade is a wasting asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The closer the lease gets to its expiry date, the more it adversely affects the salability of the property. For most buyers and mortgage companies, leases with less than 75 years become less and less attractive. On a more upbeat note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the premises for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of premises with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Walderslade conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. A more straightforward and quicker method of extending would be to contact your landlord directly and sound him out on the prospect of extending the lease They may agree to a smaller lump sum and an increase in the ground rent, but to shorter extension terms in return. You need to ensure that the agreed terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.

Last month I purchased a leasehold house in Walderslade. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

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. Strange as it may seem, 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 be sure 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).

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Walderslade with the intention of saving time on the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Walderslade can be avoided if you appoint lawyers as soon as you market your property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the purchasers’ solicitors.
• Many freeholders or Management Companies in Walderslade levy fees for providing management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should discover the actual amount of the charges. The management pack sought as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. The typical amount of time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most common reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Walderslade.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Walderslade - A selection of Queries before Purchasing

How much is the annual service fee and ground rent? It is important to be aware if fixing the lift or some other major work is due in the near future that will be shared between the leaseholders and could well materially impact the level of the maintenance fees or necessitate a one off invoice. Is the freehold reversion owned jointly by the leaseholders?

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Walderslade