Harry (my fiance) and I may need to let out our Warfield garden flat temporarily due to taking a sabbatical. We instructed a Warfield conveyancing firm in 2004 but they have since shut and we did not think at the time seek any guidance as to whether the lease permits subletting. How do we find out?

Even though your previous Warfield conveyancing lawyer is no longer available you can review your lease to see if it allows you to sublet the premises. The rule is that if the lease is non-specific, subletting is allowed. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you must obtain permission from your landlord or some other party prior to subletting. This means that you cannot sublet without first obtaining consent. The consent is not allowed to be unreasonably withheld. If the lease prohibits you from subletting the property you will need to ask your landlord for their consent.

I have just appointed agents to market my basement flat in Warfield.Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon but I have just received a half-yearly maintenance charge invoice – what should I do?

It best that you clear 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 am looking at a couple of flats in Warfield which have about fifty years left on the leases. Will this present a problem?

There is no doubt about it. A leasehold flat in Warfield is a wasting asset as a result of the shortening lease. The nearer the lease gets to its expiry date, the more it reduces the marketability of the premises. The majority of buyers and lenders, leases with under 75 years become less and less marketable. On a more positive note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the property 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 Warfield 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 You may find he or she is happy to negotiate informally and willing to consider your offer straight off, without having to involve anyone else. This will save you time and money and it could help you reach a lower price on the lease. 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.

I've recently bought a leasehold house in Warfield. 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 owner 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).

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Warfield from the perspective of saving time on the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Warfield can be reduced where you appoint lawyers the minute your agents start marketing the property and request that they start to collate the leasehold information needed by the buyers conveyancers.
• If you have carried out any alterations to the property would they have required Landlord’s permission? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Most leases in Warfield state that internal structural changes or installing wooden flooring necessitate a licence issued by the Landlord approving such works. If you dont have the consents to hand do not contact the landlord without contacting your conveyancer in advance.
• A minority of Warfield leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. Any bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are able to meet 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 purchasers or their solicitors.
• If there is a history of any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are settled before the property is put on the market. The buyers and their solicitors will be concerned about purchasing a property where there is a current dispute. You may have to bite the bullet and pay any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to present the dispute as historic as opposed to ongoing.
• If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should make sure that you are holding the original share document. Organising a re-issued share certificate can be a time consuming process and slows down many a Warfield conveyancing deal. If a reissued share is required, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (where applicable) for this at the earliest opportunity.

I inherited a basement flat in Warfield, conveyancing was carried out half a dozen years ago. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Equivalent properties in Warfield with a long lease are worth £203,000. The ground rent is £50 yearly. The lease expires on 21st October 2083

You have 57 years left to run we estimate the premium for your lease extension to range between £26,600 and £30,800 as well as plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to provide a more accurate figure without more comprehensive due diligence. You should not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional concerns that need to be considered and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not take any other action based on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.