I want to let out my leasehold flat in East Oxford. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask her. Is permission from the freeholder required?

The lease dictates relations between the freeholder and you the flat owner; in particular, it will set out if subletting is prohibited, or permitted but only subject to certain conditions. The rule is that if the lease contains no specific ban or restriction, subletting is permitted. Most leases in East Oxford do not prevent subletting altogether – such a provision would undoubtedly devalue the property. In most cases there is simply a requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly supplying a duplicate of the sublease.

I have recently realised that I have Seventy years unexpired on my lease in East Oxford. I now wish to extend my lease but my freeholder is missing. What are my options?

On the basis that you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be lengthened by the Court. You will be obliged to prove that you or your lawyers have done all that could be expected to track down the freeholder. On the whole a specialist should be useful to try and locate and to produce a report to be accepted by the court as evidence that the freeholder can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a solicitor both on investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court covering East Oxford.

I today plan to offer on a house that seems to meet my requirements, at a reasonable figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have since discovered that the title is leasehold as opposed to freehold. I would have thought that there are issues buying a leasehold house in East Oxford. Conveyancing solicitors have not yet been appointed. Will they explain the issues?

Most houses in East Oxford are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can assist with the conveyancing process. it is apparent that you are purchasing in East Oxford so you should seriously consider shopping around for a East Oxford conveyancing practitioner and check that they have experience in dealing with leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. As a lessee you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions for example obtaining the freeholder’spermission to conduct alterations. You may also be required to pay a maintenance charge towards the upkeep of the communal areas where the property is part of an estate. Your conveyancer will report to you on the legal implications.

I own a leasehold house in East Oxford. Conveyancing and Barclays Direct mortgage went though with no issue. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1998. The conveyancing practitioner in East Oxford who acted for me is not around.What should I do?

First contact HMLR to make sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is in fact the new freeholder. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a East Oxford conveyancing practitioner to do this as it can be done on-line for less than a fiver. Rest assured that regardless, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I work for a long established estate agency in East Oxford where we see a number of leasehold sales jeopardised due to short leases. I have received inconsistent advice from local East Oxford conveyancing firms. Can you clarify whether the seller of a flat can initiate the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

As long as the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the buyer 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 has to be done prior to, or at the same time as completion of the sale.

An alternative approach is 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.

East Oxford Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Queries Prior to buying

Is anyone aware of any major works in the near future that could add a premium to the service costs? Most East Oxford leasehold properties will incur a service charge for the upkeep of the building invoiced by the freeholder. If you buy the apartment you will have to pay this contribution, normally quarterly during the year. This could be anything from several hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for bigger purpose-built buildings. In all probability there will be a ground rent to be met yearly, this is usually not a large sum, say around £50-£100 but you should to enquire as occasionally it could be prohibitively expensive. Its a good idea to discover as much as you can regarding the company managing the building as they can either make your life much simpler or problematic. As the owner of a leasehold property you are often in the clutches of the managing agents both financially and when it comes to day to day issues like the upkeep of the communal areas. Ask other tenants what they think of them. In conclusion, investigate as to the dates that you are obliged pay the maintenance charge to the managing agents and precisely what it includes.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in East Oxford