Frank (my husband) and I may need to rent out our Chorleywood garden flat temporarily due to taking a sabbatical. We used a Chorleywood conveyancing practice in 2002 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?

Even though your last Chorleywood conveyancing solicitor is not around you can check your lease to check if it allows you to sublet the premises. The rule is that if the lease is silent, subletting is permitted. There may be a precondition that you must seek consent from your landlord or other appropriate person before subletting. This means you not allowed to sublet in the absence of first obtaining consent. The consent should not be unreasonably refused ore delayed. If your lease does not allow you to sublet you will need to ask your landlord for their consent.

There are only Fifty years remaining on my flat in Chorleywood. I need to get lease extension but my landlord is can not be found. What should I do?

If you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be extended by the Court. You will be obliged to prove that you have made all reasonable attempts to track down the lessor. In some cases a specialist should be useful to carry out a search and to produce an expert document to be accepted by the court as proof that the freeholder can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer both on devolving into the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Chorleywood.

What advice can you give us when it comes to appointing a Chorleywood conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a property lawyer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Chorleywood conveyancing practice) it is most important that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We suggested that you talk with two or three firms including non Chorleywood conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions could be of use:

• How familiar is the practice with lease extension legislation?

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Chorleywood from the perspective of speeding up the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Chorleywood can be reduced if you appoint lawyers the minute your agents start marketing the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information needed by the purchasers’ representatives.
• If you have carried out any alterations to the premises would they have required Landlord’s consent? Have you, for example laid down wooden flooring? Chorleywood leases often stipulate that internal structural changes or laying down wooden flooring require a licence issued by the Landlord consenting to such works. Should you dont have the consents to hand do not communicate with the landlord without checking with your conveyancer in the first instance.

Following months of correspondence we simply can't agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Chorleywood. Can we issue an application to the Residential Property Tribunal Service?

in cases where there is a absentee freeholder or if there is disagreement about what the lease extension should cost, under the relevant legislation you can apply to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal to judgment on the sum to be paid.

An example of a Lease Extension case for a Chorleywood premises is Flats 8, 11 and 15 Craigmore Court 46 Murray Road in December 2013. The tribunal held that the price payable by the Applicant tenant of Flat 8 to acquire an extended lease shall be £26,438 plus £1 to the intermediate lessee . The tribunal held that the price payable by the Applicant tenants of Flat 11 to acquire an extended lease shall be £26,791 plus £1 to the intermediate lessee. The tribunal held that the price payable by the Applicant tenant of Flat 15 to acquire an extended lease shall be £26,638 plus £1 to the intermediate lessee . This case affected 3 flats. The the number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 71 years.

What are the frequently found defects that you see in leases for Chorleywood properties?

Leasehold conveyancing in Chorleywood is not unique. All leases is drafted differently and legal mistakes in the legal wording can result in certain sections are not included. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• A provision to repair to or maintain parts of the property
• Insurance obligations
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

A defective lease can cause problems when trying to sell a property as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Santander, Skipton Building Society, and Alliance & Leicester all have express conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is defective they may refuse to provide security, forcing the buyer to withdraw.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Chorleywood