My partner and I may need to let out our Walton on the Naze basement flat temporarily due to a new job. We instructed a Walton on the Naze conveyancing firm in 2004 but they have closed and we did not have the foresight to seek any advice as to whether the lease prohibits the subletting of the flat. How do we find out?

Notwithstanding that your previous Walton on the Naze conveyancing solicitor is not available you can check your lease to see if you are permitted to let out the property. The rule is that if the deeds are silent, subletting is allowed. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you are obliged to obtain consent via your landlord or other appropriate person in advance of subletting. This means you not allowed to sublet without prior consent. The consent is not allowed to be unreasonably refused ore delayed. If the lease does not allow you to sublet you should ask your landlord for their consent.

There are only Sixty One years left on my lease in Walton on the Naze. I am keen to get lease extension but my freeholder is can not be found. What are my options?

If you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for an order 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 used your best endeavours to find the landlord. In some cases an enquiry agent would be helpful to carry out a search and to produce an expert document to be used as evidence that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a property lawyer in relation to investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing Walton on the Naze.

Can you offer any advice when it comes to choosing a Walton on the Naze conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

If you are instructing a conveyancer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Walton on the Naze conveyancing firm) it is essential that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We advise that you make enquires with two or three firms including non Walton on the Naze conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions might be useful:

• Can they put you in touch with client in Walton on the Naze who can give a testimonial?
• What are the costs for lease extension work?

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Walton on the Naze with the aim of saving time on the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Walton on the Naze can be reduced where you instruct lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to collate the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers conveyancers.
• Some Walton on the Naze leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, it would be prudent to notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. Any bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are financially capable of paying the annual service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their lawyers.
• If there is a history of conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are settled prior to the flat being put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where there is an ongoing dispute. You may have to bite the bullet and pay any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to reveal the dispute as historic rather than unsettled.
• If you hold a share in a the freehold, you should ensure that you are holding the original share document. Obtaining a new share certificate can be a lengthy process and slows down many a Walton on the Naze conveyancing transaction. If a reissued share is required, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (if relevant) for this sooner rather than later.
• You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but it would be wise to double-check via your lawyers. A purchaser's conveyancer will be unlikely to recommend their client to where the lease term is below 75 years. It is therefore essential at an early stage that you consider whether the lease for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

What makes a Walton on the Naze lease problematic?

Leasehold conveyancing in Walton on the Naze is not unique. All leases is drafted differently and drafting errors can sometimes mean that certain sections are not included. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• A provision to repair to or maintain parts of the premises
• A duty to insure the building
• A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
• Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

You will encounter a problem when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Halifax, Skipton Building Society, and TSB all have very detailed conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is defective they may refuse to provide security, obliging the buyer to pull out.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Walton on the Naze - Sample of Queries Prior to buying

How many of the leaseholders are in arrears for their maintenance charge payments? The prefered form of lease structure is if the freehold interest is owned by the leaseholders. In this situation the lessees have being in charge if their destiny and even though a managing agent is frequently retained where it is bigger than a house conversion, the managing agent is directed by the tenants.