Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Llandudno. Before diving in I want to be sure as to the number of years remaining on the lease.

If the lease is registered - and 99.9% are in Llandudno - then the leasehold title will always include the basic details 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.

Frank (my husband) and I may need to rent out our Llandudno basement flat for a while due to a new job. We instructed a Llandudno conveyancing practice in 2004 but they have since shut and we did not have the foresight to get any guidance as to whether the lease permits subletting. How do we find out?

A lease dictates the relationship between the freeholder and you the flat owner; specifically, it will set out if subletting is prohibited, or permitted but only subject to certain caveats. The rule is that if the lease contains no expres ban or restriction, subletting is permitted. Most leases in Llandudno do not contain subletting altogether – such a provision would undoubtedly devalue the flat. Instead, there is usually simply a requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly sending a duplicate of the sublease.

Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only Fifty years left on my flat in Llandudno. I need to get lease extension but my landlord is absent. What options are available to me?

If you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application 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 or your lawyers have made all reasonable attempts to find the lessor. For most situations an enquiry agent should be helpful to conduct investigations and to produce an expert document to be used as evidence that the freeholder can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a solicitor in relation to proving the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing Llandudno.

I've found a house that seems to tick a lot of boxes, at a reasonable figure which is making it more attractive. I have subsequently been informed that it's a leasehold as opposed to freehold. I would have thought that there are particular concerns buying a house with a leasehold title in Llandudno. Conveyancing solicitors have not yet been instructed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Llandudno are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can assist with the conveyancing process. We note that you are buying in Llandudno in which case you should be looking for a Llandudno conveyancing practitioner and check that they are used to transacting on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the number of years remaining. As a tenant you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions for example obtaining the freeholder’sconsent to conduct alterations. You may also be required to pay a service charge towards the maintenance of the communal areas where the property is located on an estate. Your lawyer should appraise you on the various issues.

I am employed by a long established estate agent office in Llandudno where we have experienced a number of leasehold sales jeopardised as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Llandudno conveyancing solicitors. Can you clarify whether the vendor of a flat can start the lease extension process for the buyer?

Provided that the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser need not have to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or simultaneously with 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.

I inherited a ground floor flat in Llandudno, conveyancing having been completed in 2008. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Corresponding properties in Llandudno with an extended lease are worth £241,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 invoiced every year. The lease ceases on 21st October 2091

With 65 years remaining on your lease we estimate the price of your lease extension to range between £14,300 and £16,400 plus professional fees.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to provide the actual costs in the absence of comprehensive investigations. You should not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt additional issues that need to be taken into account and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward placing reliance on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.