I want to sublet my leasehold apartment in Brook Green. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask him. Do I need to ask my freeholder for permission?

A small minority of properties in Brook Green do contain a provision to say that subletting is only allowed with permission. The landlord cannot unreasonably withhold but, in such cases, they would need to review references. Experience dictates that problems are usually caused by unsatisfactory tenants rather than owner-occupiers and for that reason you can expect the freeholder to take up the references and consider them carefully before granting permission.

Planning to exchange soon on a leasehold property in Brook Green. Conveyancing lawyers have said that they report fully next week. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Brook Green should include some of the following:

• The unexpired lease term You should be advised as what happens when the lease expires, and aware of the importance of not letting the lease term falling below eighty years

I am attracted to a couple of maisonettes in Brook Green which have approximately fifty years left on the leases. Will this present a problem?

There is no doubt about it. A leasehold flat in Brook Green is a wasting asset as a result of the shortening lease. The nearer the lease gets to its expiry date, the more it reduces the marketability of the property. The majority of buyers and lenders, leases with under eighty years become less and less attractive. On a more upbeat note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the property 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 Brook Green conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. A more straightforward and quicker method of extending would be to contact your landlord directly and sound him out on the prospect of extending the lease You may find he or she is happy to negotiate informally and willing to consider your offer straight off, without having to involve anyone else. This will save you time and money and it could help you reach a lower price on the lease. You need to ensure that any new 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 agency in Brook Green where we see a number of flat sales jeopardised due to short leases. I have been given conflicting advice from local Brook Green conveyancing solicitors. Please can you clarify whether the seller of a flat can instigate the lease extension process for the buyer?

As long as the seller has owned the lease 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 before, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

Alternatively, it may be possible to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord 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.

We expect to complete our sale of a £200000 apartment in Brook Green on Tuesday in a week. The managing agents has quoted £336 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and 3 years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in Brook Green?

Brook Green conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes usually requires the buyer’s lawyer submitting questions for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is not legally bound to respond to such questions the majority will be content to assist. They are at liberty charge a reasonable administration fee for answering enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average costs for the information that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some situations it is in excess of £800. The management information fee required by the landlord must be accompanied by a summary of entitlements and obligations in relation to administration charges, otherwise the invoice is not strictly payable. In reality you have no option but to pay whatever is requested of you if you want to complete the sale of your home.

I own a first floor flat in Brook Green. Given that I can not reach agreement with the freeholder, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal determine the amount due for the purchase of the freehold?

if there is a missing landlord or where there is disagreement about the premium for a lease extension, under the relevant legislation you can apply to the LVT to calculate the sum to be paid.

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement case for a Brook Green property is 83 Sinclair Road in September 2010. The decision of the Tribunal was that the price to be paid by the Applicant to the Respondent for the freehold interest in the Property was the sum of £93,650 This case related to 4 flats. The unexpired lease term was 70.58 years.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Brook Green