Helen (my wife) and I may need to rent out our Winchcombe garden flat for a while due to taking a sabbatical. We instructed a Winchcombe conveyancing firm in 2001 but they have since shut and we did not have the foresight to get any guidance as to whether the lease prohibits the subletting of the flat. How do we find out?

Even though your last Winchcombe conveyancing solicitor is no longer around you can review your lease to see if it allows you to sublet 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 seek permission via your landlord or some other party in advance of subletting. The net result is that you cannot sublet without first obtaining permission. Such consent should not be unreasonably turned down. If the lease does not allow you to sublet you should ask your landlord for their consent.

There are only 62 years remaining on my lease in Winchcombe. I am keen to get lease extension but my freeholder is can not be found. What should I do?

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 enable the lease to be lengthened by the Court. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you have done all that could be expected to track down the landlord. On the whole a specialist should be useful to try and locate and prepare an expert document which can be used as proof that the landlord is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a solicitor in relation to proving the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court covering Winchcombe.

I have just started marketing my ground floor apartment in Winchcombe.Conveyancing has not commenced but I have just had a half-yearly service charge demand – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

The sensible thing to do is clear the service charge 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.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold flat in Winchcombe. Conveyancing and Barclays Direct mortgage organised. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1992. The conveyancing solicitor in Winchcombe who acted for me is not around.What should I do?

First contact the Land Registry to make sure that this person is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. There is no need to incur the fees of a Winchcombe conveyancing lawyer to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. Rest assured that regardless, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Winchcombe with the purpose of speeding up the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Winchcombe can be avoided if you appoint lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and ask them to collate the leasehold information which will be required by the purchasers’ conveyancers.
• Many landlords or Management Companies in Winchcombe levy fees for providing management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should find out the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus reducing delays. The average time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most frequent reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Winchcombe.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s permission? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Winchcombe leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or installing wooden flooring calls for a licence issued by the Landlord approving such works. Where you dont have the consents to hand you should not communicate with the landlord without contacting your conveyancer before hand.
• A minority of Winchcombe leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. The 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 service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their solicitors.
• If you have the benefit of shareholding in the Management Company, you should make sure that you have the original share document. Arranging a replacement share certificate is often a time consuming formality and frustrates many a Winchcombe conveyancing deal. If a new share certificate is necessary, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (where relevant) for this at the earliest opportunity.

Winchcombe Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Queries before Purchasing

Are any of leasehold owners in arrears of their service charge liability? It is important to be aware whether fixing the lift or some other significant cost is coming up to be shared amongst the leaseholders and could well dramatically impact the level of the maintenance charges or necessitate a specific invoice.