Frank (my husband) and I may need to sub-let our Birkenhead garden flat temporarily due to taking a sabbatical. We used a Birkenhead conveyancing firm in 2003 but they have since shut and we did not think at the time get any guidance as to whether the lease prohibits the subletting of the flat. How do we find out?

Even though your previous Birkenhead conveyancing solicitor is not available you can check your lease to check if it allows you to sublet the premises. The accepted inference is that if the deeds are silent, subletting is permitted. There may be a precondition that you must obtain permission via your landlord or some other party prior to subletting. The net result is that you cannot sublet in the absence of prior permission. The consent should not 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.

There are only Fifty years remaining on my lease in Birkenhead. I now want to get lease extension but my freeholder is can not be found. What should I do?

On the basis that you meet the appropriate requirements, 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 enable the lease to be granted an extra 90 years by the Court. You will be obliged to prove that you have made all reasonable attempts to locate the landlord. For most situations an enquiry agent may be helpful to carry out a search and to produce an expert document to be used as proof that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer both on devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court covering Birkenhead.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold flat in Birkenhead. Conveyancing and Chelsea Building Society mortgage are in place. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1996. The conveyancing practitioner in Birkenhead who acted for me is not around.Do I pay?

The first thing you should do is make enquiries of HMLR to be sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is indeed the new freeholder. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Birkenhead conveyancing firm to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for £3. Rest assured that regardless, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I've recently bought a leasehold house in Birkenhead. Do I have any liability for service charges relating to a period prior to 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. A critical element 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).

What makes a Birkenhead lease unmortgageable?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Birkenhead. All leases are individual and drafting errors can sometimes mean that certain sections are wrong. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain elements of the property
• A duty to insure the building
• A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

You could encounter a problem when selling your property if you have a defective lease as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Santander, Bank of Scotland, and Nottingham Building Society 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 provide security, forcing the buyer to pull out.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Birkenhead - Sample of Queries before Purchasing

Can you tell me if there are any major works in the planning that will add a premium to the maintenance charges? Most Birkenhead leasehold flats will have a service charge for the upkeep of the building set by the freeholder. If you purchase the flat you will have to pay this contribution, normally periodically throughout the year. This can differ from several hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for blocks with lifts and large communal areas. There will also be a rentcharge for you to pay yearly, normally this is not a exorbitant sum, say about £25-£75 but you should to enquire it because sometimes it could be many hundreds of pounds. Where a Birkenhead lease has fewer than 80 years it will have adverse implications on the marketability of the flat. Check with your mortgage company that they are willing to lend given the lease term. A short lease means that you will most likely need a lease extension sooner rather than later and it is worth finding out how much this will be. Remember, in most cases you would be required to have been the owner of the premises for two years in order to be entitled to carry out a lease extension.