I wish to let out my leasehold flat in City Of London. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask her. Do I need to ask my freeholder for permission?

Even though your previous City Of London conveyancing solicitor is no longer around you can check your lease to see if you are permitted to let out the property. The accepted inference is that if the deeds are silent, subletting is allowed. There may be a precondition that you must seek consent from your landlord or other appropriate person prior to subletting. The net result is you not allowed to sublet in the absence of prior permission. Such consent must not not be unreasonably turned down. If your lease does not allow you to sublet you should ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

I have just appointed agents to market my basement apartment in City Of London.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just received a half-yearly maintenance charge demand – what should I do?

It best that you discharge the service charge as normal because all ground rent and service charges will be apportioned on completion, so you will be reimbursed by the buyer for the period running from after the completion date to the next payment date. Most management companies will not acknowledge the buyer until the service charges have been paid and are up to date so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

Back In 2009, I bought a leasehold house in City Of London. Conveyancing and Skipton Building Society mortgage are in place. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the freehold. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1996. The conveyancing solicitor in City Of London who previously acted has now retired.What should I do?

The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to make sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is indeed the new freeholder. There is no need to instruct a City Of London conveyancing practitioner to do this as it can be done on-line for a few pound. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

Last month I purchased a leasehold house in City Of London. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

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).

Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on the disposal of our £300000 flat in City Of London next Wednesday . The landlords agents has quoted £300 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and 3 years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in City Of London?

City Of London conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes nine out of ten times results in fees being levied by freeholders :

• Completing pre-contract enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in City Of London
• Supplying insurance information
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your lawyer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for City Of London leasehold premises is £350. For City Of London 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.

I acquired a ground floor flat in City Of London, conveyancing was carried out 3 years ago. Can you let me have an estimate of the premium that my landlord can legally expect in return for granting a renewal of my lease? Corresponding properties in City Of London with a long lease are worth £187,000. The ground rent is £65 yearly. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2087

You have 62 years unexpired we estimate the premium for your lease extension to range between £18,100 and £20,800 as well as legals.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure without more detailed due diligence. Do not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be additional concerns that need to be considered and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward based on this information without first getting professional advice.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in City Of London