My husband and I may need to rent out our Canons Park basement flat for a while due to taking a sabbatical. We used a Canons Park conveyancing firm in 2003 but they have closed and we did not have the foresight to get any advice as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?

A lease dictates relations between the landlord and you the leaseholder; in particular, it will set out if subletting is banned, or permitted but only subject to certain caveats. The rule is that if the lease contains no expres ban or restriction, subletting is allowed. Most leases in Canons Park do not prevent an absolute prevention of subletting – such a provision would adversely affect the market value the property. In most cases there is simply a requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly sending a copy of the sublease.

I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that appears to tick a lot of boxes, at a great figure which is making it more attractive. I have just discovered that it's a leasehold as opposed to freehold. I would have thought that there are particular concerns buying a leasehold house in Canons Park. Conveyancing advisers have are soon to be instructed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Canons Park are freehold and not leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area can assist with the conveyancing process. We note that you are buying in Canons Park in which case you should be shopping around for a Canons Park conveyancing practitioner and be sure that they are used to transacting on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the unexpired lease term. Being a leaseholder you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want with the house. The lease comes with conditions such as obtaining the landlord’sconsent to carry out alterations. You may also be required to pay a maintenance charge towards the upkeep of the estate where the property is part of an estate. Your conveyancer will report to you on the legal implications.

Last month I purchased a leasehold property in Canons Park. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before my ownership?

In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. However, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. It is an essential part of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to be sure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.

If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).

What are your top tips when it comes to appointing a Canons Park conveyancing firm to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

When appointing a property lawyer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Canons Park conveyancing firm) it is essential that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We recommend that you speak with several firms including non Canons Park conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions might be of use:

• How familiar is the practice with lease extension legislation?

If they are not ALEP accredited then why not?

We expect to complete the disposal of our £325000 garden flat in Canons Park on Monday in a week. The landlords agents has quoted £312 for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and previous years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge such fees for a leasehold conveyance in Canons Park?

For the majority of leasehold sales in Canons Park conveyancing will involve, questions about the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :

• Completing conveyancing due diligence enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in Canons Park
• Copies of the building insurance and schedule
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your conveyancer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Canons Park leasehold property is £350. For Canons Park conveyancing transactions it is customary for the seller to pay for these costs. The landlord or their agents are under no legal obligation to answer such questions most will be willing to do so - albeit often at exorbitant prices where the fees bear little relation to the work involved. Unfortunately there is no law that requires fixed charges for administrative tasks. Neither is there any legal time frame by which they are obliged to supply the information.

Canons Park Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Questions you should ask Prior to Purchasing

This information is helpful as a) areas can cause problems in the building as the common areas may begin to deteriorate where repairs remain unpaid b) if the tenants have a dispute with the running of the building you will wish to have all the details Best to be warned whether window replacement or some other significant cost is anticipated that will be shared by the tenants and may well dramatically increase the the service fees or result in a one off invoice. How much is the ground rent and service charge?

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Canons Park