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

Notwithstanding that your previous Wolverton conveyancing lawyer is no longer available you can review your lease to check if it allows you to sublet the apartment. The accepted inference is that if the lease is non-specific, subletting is allowed. There may be a precondition that you must obtain permission from your landlord or some other party before subletting. This means you not allowed to sublet without first obtaining permission. The consent is not allowed to be unreasonably turned down. If the lease does not allow you to sublet you will need to ask your landlord for their consent.

I own a leasehold house in Wolverton. Conveyancing and Birmingham Midshires mortgage organised. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the freehold. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1993. The conveyancing practitioner in Wolverton who acted for me is not around.Any advice?

The first thing you should do is contact the Land Registry to be sure that this person is indeed the new freeholder. You do not need to incur the fees of a Wolverton conveyancing practitioner to do this as it can be done on-line for £3. You should note that in any event, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I work for a busy estate agency in Wolverton where we have experienced a few leasehold sales derailed due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received inconsistent advice from local Wolverton conveyancing solicitors. Please can you clarify whether the owner of a flat can instigate the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the buyer can avoid having to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed before, 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 purchaser.

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Wolverton with the intention of expediting the sale process?

• Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Wolverton can be reduced if you appoint lawyers the minute your agents start marketing the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold documentation needed by the purchasers’ representatives.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s permission? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Wolverton leases often stipulate that internal structural changes or installing wooden flooring require a licence from the Landlord approving such alterations. Where you fail to have the approvals to hand you should not communicate with the landlord without checking with your conveyancer in the first instance.
• If there is a history of any disputes with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are settled before the property is put on the market. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where a dispute is ongoing. You may have to bite the bullet and discharge any arrears of service charge or settle 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 will still have to reveal details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to present the dispute as over as opposed to unresolved.
• If you have the benefit of shareholding in the Management Company, you should make sure that you are holding the original share document. Arranging a replacement share certificate can be a time consuming formality and frustrates many a Wolverton home move. If a duplicate share is required, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (where relevant) for this sooner rather than later.
• You may think that you are aware of the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be advisable verify this by asking your conveyancers. A purchaser's conveyancer will be unlikely to recommend their client to to exchange contracts if the remaining number of years is below 75 years. In the circumstances it is essential at an as soon as possible that you consider whether the lease term requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Wolverton what are the most common lease defects?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Wolverton. Most leases are individual and drafting errors can result in certain sections are missing. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the premises
• 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 issues when trying to sell a property primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Halifax, Virgin Money, and Alliance & Leicester all have very detailed requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is defective they may refuse to grant the mortgage, forcing the buyer to pull out.

I own a basement flat in Wolverton, conveyancing was carried out in 2003. Can you let me have an estimate of the premium that my landlord can legally expect in return for granting a renewal of my lease? Similar properties in Wolverton with over 90 years remaining are worth £185,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £45 per annum. The lease runs out on 21st October 2089

You have 63 years left to run the likely cost is going to be between £15,200 and £17,600 plus costs.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure without more detailed investigations. Do not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be additional concerns that need to be considered and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward placing reliance on this information before getting professional advice.