I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Houghton Regis. Before diving in I want to be sure as to the unexpired term of the lease.

Assuming the lease is registered - and 99.9% are in Houghton Regis - then the leasehold title will always include the short particulars of the lease, namely the date; the term; and the original parties. From a conveyancing perspective such details then enable any prospective buyer and lender to confirm that any lease they are looking at is the one relevant to that title.For any other purpose, such as confirming how long the term was granted for and calculating what is left, then the register should be sufficient on it's own.

I wish to sublet my leasehold flat in Houghton Regis. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask him. Do I need to ask my freeholder for their consent?

Even though your previous Houghton Regis conveyancing lawyer is no longer around you can check your lease to check 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 need to obtain consent via your landlord or other appropriate person in advance of subletting. The net result is you not allowed to sublet in the absence of prior consent. Such consent should not be unreasonably withheld. If your lease prohibits you from subletting the property you should ask your landlord for their consent.

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a two maisonettes in Houghton Regis which have approximately 50 years remaining on the leases. Will this present a problem?

There are no two ways about it. A leasehold flat in Houghton Regis is a deteriorating asset as a result of the shortening lease. The nearer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it reduces the marketability of the property. The majority of buyers and lenders, leases with less than 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 premises 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 Houghton Regis conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. More often than not it is possible to negotiate informally with the freeholder to extend the lease They may agree to a smaller lump sum and an increase in the ground rent, but to shorter extension terms in return. 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 am employed by a long established estate agent office in Houghton Regis where we see a few flat sales jeopardised due to short leases. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Houghton Regis conveyancing firms. Could you shed some light as to whether the vendor of a flat can initiate the lease extension process for the buyer?

As long as the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the buyer can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

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 buyer.

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Houghton Regis from the perspective of speeding up the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Houghton Regis can be reduced where you get in touch lawyers the minute your agents start marketing the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers lawyers.
• Some Houghton Regis 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 bank and professional references. The bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is able to meet the yearly 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 resolved prior to the flat being marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where there is a current dispute. You may have to bite the bullet and pay any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to completion of the sale. 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 details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to present the dispute as historic as opposed to unresolved.
• If you are supposed to have a share in the Management Company, you should make sure that you have the original share certificate. Arranging a re-issued share certificate can be a time consuming formality and delays many a Houghton Regis home move. Where a duplicate share is necessary, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (if relevant) for this at the earliest opportunity.
• You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be wise to verify this by asking your solicitors. A purchaser's conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to where the remaining number of years is below 80 years. In the circumstances it is essential at an early stage that you consider whether the lease term for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

Houghton Regis Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - A selection of Questions you should consider Prior to Purchasing

On the whole the outlay for major works are not included within service charges, although there some managing agents in Houghton Regis ask leaseholders to pay into a reserve fund created for the specific intention of building a fund for major repairs or maintenance. You should want to find out as much as you can concerning the managing agents as they can either make your living at the property much easier or uncomfortable. Being a leasehold owner you will be at the mercy of the managing agents from a financial perspective and when it comes to day to day issues like the tidiness of the common parts. Don't be shy to ask other tenants if they are happy with them. Finally, find out the dates that the service charges are due to the managing agents and specifically what it includes.