My partner and I may need to rent out our Flint garden flat for a while due to taking a sabbatical. We instructed a Flint conveyancing practice in 2002 but they have since shut and we did not think at the time seek any guidance as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?

Notwithstanding that your previous Flint conveyancing lawyer is no longer available you can check your lease to see if it allows you to sublet the premises. The accepted inference is that if the lease is non-specific, subletting is permitted. There may be a precondition that you are obliged to seek consent from your landlord or other appropriate person before subletting. This means you not allowed to sublet without first obtaining permission. The consent is not allowed to be unreasonably refused ore delayed. If the lease does not allow you to sublet you will need to ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

I only have Fifty years unexpired on my lease in Flint. I need to get lease extension but my landlord is absent. What should I do?

If you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be granted an extra 90 years by the Court. However, you will be required to prove that you or your lawyers have used your best endeavours to locate the freeholder. In some cases a specialist should be useful to conduct investigations and to produce a report which can be accepted by the court as proof that the landlord is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer both on devolving into the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Flint.

What are your top tips when it comes to finding a Flint conveyancing firm to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

If you are instructing a solicitor for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Flint conveyancing practice) it is most important that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We advise that you make enquires with two or three firms including non Flint conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions could be helpful:

• How experienced is the practice with lease extension legislation?
• What are the legal fees for lease extension conveyancing?

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

• Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Flint can be bypassed if you get in touch lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers conveyancers.
• If you have carried out any alterations to the residence would they have required Landlord’s consent? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Flint leases often stipulate that internal structural changes or installing wooden flooring calls for a licence from the Landlord approving such changes. Should you fail to have the paperwork in place do not communicate with the landlord without contacting your solicitor before hand.
• A minority of Flint leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand financial (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 service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their lawyers.
• If you have the benefit of shareholding in the freehold, you should make sure that you hold the original share certificate. Arranging a new share certificate is often a time consuming formality and delays many a Flint home move. Where a reissued share is required, do contact the company officers or managing agents (if relevant) for this sooner rather than later.
• You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but you should verify this by asking your lawyers. A purchaser's lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the remaining number of years is below 80 years. In the circumstances it is important at an early stage that you identify whether the lease term requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

What makes a Flint lease problematic?

Leasehold conveyancing in Flint is not unique. All leases are unique and legal mistakes in the legal wording can result in certain sections are erroneous. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain elements 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 problems when trying to sell a property as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Birmingham Midshires, Skipton Building Society, and Godiva Mortgages Ltd all have very detailed conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is defective they may refuse to provide security, obliging the buyer to pull out.

Flint Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - A selection of Questions you should ask before Purchasing

In the main the cost for major works are not incorporated into the service charges, albeit that a few managing agents in Flint obliged leaseholders to pay into a reserve fund and this is used to offset against larger repairs or maintenance.