My partner and I may need to let out our Hermitage garden flat for a while due to taking a sabbatical. We instructed a Hermitage conveyancing practice in 2002 but they have closed and we did not think at the time seek any guidance as to whether the lease permits subletting. How do we find out?

The lease governs the relationship between the landlord and you the flat owner; specifically, it will set out if subletting is prohibited, or permitted but only subject to certain caveats. The accepted inference is that if the lease contains no expres ban or restriction, subletting is permitted. The majority of leases in Hermitage do not contain an absolute prevention of subletting – such a provision would undoubtedly devalue the flat. In most cases there is simply a requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly supplying a duplicate of the tenancy agreement.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold house in Hermitage. Conveyancing and Halifax 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 1994. The conveyancing solicitor in Hermitage who acted for me is not around.Any advice?

The first thing you should do is make enquiries of the Land Registry to be sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is in fact the new freeholder. It is not necessary to instruct a Hermitage conveyancing solicitor to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. You should note that regardless, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

Last month I purchased a leasehold property in Hermitage. Do I have any liability for 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 ensure 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 advice can you give us when it comes to choosing a Hermitage conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

If you are instructing a property lawyer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Hermitage conveyancing practice) it is imperative that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We recommend that you talk with several firms including non Hermitage conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions could be useful:

• Can they put you in touch with client in Hermitage who can give a testimonial?

What are the legal fees for lease extension conveyancing?

If all goes to plan we aim to complete the disposal of our £225000 apartment in Hermitage next week. The managing agents has quoted £300 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and 3 years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Hermitage?

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

• Answering pre-contract questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Hermitage
• 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 Hermitage leasehold property is £350. For Hermitage 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.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Hermitage - Sample of Questions you should ask before Purchasing

The answer will be helpful as a) areas could cause problems in the block as the common areas may begin to deteriorate where maintenance are not paid for b) if the tenants have an issue with the running of the building you will need to have all the details The majority of Hermitage leasehold apartments will incur a service bill for the upkeep of the block set on behalf of the freeholder. Should you buy the apartment you will have to meet this charge, usually periodically throughout the year. This can vary from two or three hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for buildings with lifts and large communal areas. In all likelihood there will be a ground rent to be met annual, this is usually not a exorbitant sum, say around £50-£100 but you should to enquire it because on occasion it could be many hundreds of pounds. It would be wise to enquire if there is anything that is prohibited in the lease. For example it is reasonably common in Hermitage leases that pets are not permitted in certain buildings in Hermitage. If you like the propertyin Hermitage but your dog is not allowed to live with you then you have a very hard decision.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Hermitage