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

Even though your previous Walkden conveyancing solicitor is no longer available you can review your lease to see 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 need to obtain consent via your landlord or other appropriate person in advance of subletting. This means that you cannot sublet in the absence of prior consent. Such consent should not be unreasonably turned down. If your lease prohibits you from subletting the property you should ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that seems to meet my requirements, at a great price which is making it all the more appealing. I have just been informed that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are particular concerns buying a house with a leasehold title in Walkden. Conveyancing solicitors have are soon to be appointed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Walkden are freehold rather than leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can help the conveyancing process. We note that you are purchasing in Walkden in which case you should be shopping around for a Walkden conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they have experience in dealing with leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the number of years remaining. Being a lessee you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions for example requiring the freeholder’spermission to carry out changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a maintenance charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the house is located on an estate. Your lawyer should appraise you on the various issues.

What advice can you give us when it comes to choosing a Walkden conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?

When appointing a property lawyer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Walkden conveyancing firm) it is essential that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We advise that you make enquires with several firms including non Walkden conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions could be helpful:

• How familiar is the practice with lease extension legislation?
• If they are not ALEP accredited then what is the reason?

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Walkden with the purpose of saving time on the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Walkden can be bypassed if you appoint lawyers as soon as you market your property and request that they start to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers representatives.
• The majority freeholders or Management Companies in Walkden charge for supplying management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should discover the actual amount of the charges. The management pack sought as soon as you have a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The typical amount of time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most common cause of frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Walkden.
• Some Walkden leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, it would be prudent to place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is 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 actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their lawyers.
• If you have had any disputes with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved before the property is put on the market. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where a dispute is unsettled. You will have to accept that you will have to pay any arrears of service charge or resolve 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 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.
• You may think that you are aware of the number of years left on your lease but you should verify this by asking your conveyancers. A purchaser's conveyancer will be unlikely to recommend their client to where the lease term is under 80 years. In the circumstances it is important at an early stage that you consider whether the lease term requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale.

All being well we will complete the disposal of our £ 350000 flat in Walkden in nine days. The managing agents has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and 3 years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge an administration fee for a leasehold conveyance in Walkden?

Walkden conveyancing on leasehold apartments normally involves the purchaser’s lawyer submitting enquiries for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is not legally bound to respond to these enquiries most will be content to assist. They may charge a reasonable administration fee for responding to questions or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average costs for the paperwork that you are referring to is £350, in some transactions it exceeds £800. The administration charge levied by the landlord must be accompanied by a synopsis of entitlements and obligations in respect of administration fees, without which the invoice is not strictly payable. In reality one has no option but to pay whatever is requested of you if you want to complete the sale of your home.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Walkden - Sample of Queries Prior to buying

What is the the remaining lease term?