Planning to complete next month on a leasehold property in Little Venice. Conveyancing lawyers assured me that they will have a report out to me next week. What should I be looking out for?

Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Little Venice should include some of the following:

• Does the lease require carpeting throughout thus preventing wood flooring?

Whether your lease has a provision for a sinking fund?

Changes to the flat (alterations and additions)

I don't know whether the lease allows me to alter or improve anything in the flat - you should know whether it applies to all alterations or just structural alteration, and whether consent is required

The landlord’s rights to access the flat you be made aware that your landlord has rights of access and I know how much notice s/he must provide.

Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your premises and do you know what it means in practice?

What the implications are if you breach a clause of your lease? For a comprehensive list of information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Little Venice please ask your lawyer in ahead of your conveyancing in Little Venice

I today plan to offer on a house that seems to tick a lot of boxes, at a reasonable figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have since been informed that the title is leasehold as opposed to freehold. I would have thought that there are particular concerns buying a leasehold house in Little Venice. Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been appointed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Little Venice are freehold rather than leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area can assist with the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are purchasing in Little Venice so you should seriously consider looking for a Little Venice conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they are used to dealing with leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. Being a lessee you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease comes with conditions such as obtaining the landlord’sconsent to conduct alterations. You may also be required to pay a maintenance charge towards the upkeep of the estate where the house is located on an estate. Your conveyancer should appraise you on the various issues.

I've recently bought a leasehold house in Little Venice. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before my ownership?

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. Strange as it may seem, 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).

I am a negotiator for a long established estate agent office in Little Venice where we see a few flat sales jeopardised as a result of short leases. I have been given conflicting advice from local Little Venice conveyancing solicitors. Please can you shed some light as to whether the seller of a flat can initiate the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that the seller has been the owner 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. This means that the buyer need not have to wait 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 simultaneously with 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.

Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on the disposal of our £300000 garden flat in Little Venice on Friday in a week. The management company has quoted £384 for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and previous years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge an administration fee for a flat conveyance in Little Venice?

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

• Answering conveyancing due diligence enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in Little Venice
• Supplying insurance information
• 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 Little Venice leasehold premises is £350. For Little Venice 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 required to supply answers.

I purchased a split level flat in Little Venice, conveyancing was carried out 2005. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Similar properties in Little Venice with over 90 years remaining are worth £239,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 invoiced annually. The lease ceases on 21st October 2076

With just 56 years left to run the likely cost is going to span between £25,700 and £29,600 as well as professional fees.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs without more comprehensive investigations. Do not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt other concerns that need to be considered and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not take any other action placing reliance on this information without first getting professional advice.

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Lease Extensions in Little Venice