Frank (my husband) and I may need to let out our Aldborough Hatch basement flat temporarily due to a new job. We used a Aldborough Hatch conveyancing firm in 2002 but they have since shut and we did not have the foresight to get any guidance as to whether the lease permits subletting. How do we find out?

Some leases for properties in Aldborough Hatch do contain a provision to say that subletting is only permitted with prior consent from the landlord. The landlord is not entitled to unreasonably withhold but, in such cases, they would need to review references. Experience suggests that problems are usually caused by unsatisfactory tenants rather than owner-occupiers and for that reason you can expect the freeholder to take up the references and consider them carefully before granting consent.

There are only Seventy years remaining on my flat in Aldborough Hatch. I am keen to extend my lease but my freeholder is missing. What options are available to me?

If you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be extended by the magistrate. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have used your best endeavours to track down the freeholder. In some cases a specialist would be useful to conduct investigations and to produce a report which can be accepted by the court as proof that the landlord is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer both on proving the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Aldborough Hatch.

Can you offer any advice when it comes to choosing a Aldborough Hatch conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a conveyancer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Aldborough Hatch conveyancing firm) it is essential that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We advise that you make enquires with several firms including non Aldborough Hatch conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions might be of use:

• How familiar is the practice with lease extension legislation?

All being well we will complete the sale of our £425000 maisonette in Aldborough Hatch in just under a week. The freeholder has quoted £372 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and previous years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge an administration fee for a leasehold conveyance in Aldborough Hatch?

Aldborough Hatch conveyancing on leasehold flats usually necessitates the purchaser’s conveyancer submitting enquiries for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is not legally bound to respond to such questions most will be willing to assist. They are at liberty levy a reasonable charge for responding to enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average fee for the paperwork that you are referring to is £350, in some cases it is above £800. The management information fee levied by the landlord must be sent together with a synopsis of entitlements and obligations in relation to administration charges, otherwise the charge is not strictly payable. Reality however dictates that you have little option but to pay whatever is requested of you should you wish to exchange contracts with the buyer.

I inherited a two-bedroom flat in Aldborough Hatch. In the absence of agreement between myself and the landlord, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal determine the sum payable for the purchase of the freehold?

Where there is a missing landlord or where there is dispute about what the lease extension should cost, under the relevant legislation it is possible to make an application to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal to arrive at the sum to be paid.

An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a Aldborough Hatch property is 49 Aldborough Road South in July 2012. The Tribunal decided that the premium payable for the grant of the new lease was £13,925 This case related to 1 flat. The remaining number of years on the lease was 61.36 years.

When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Aldborough Hatch what are the most common lease problems?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Aldborough Hatch. Most leases is drafted differently and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain provisions are missing. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• A provision to repair to or maintain parts of the property
• A duty to insure the building
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

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. Accord Mortgages Ltd, Barnsley Building Society, and Alliance & Leicester all have express requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is problematic they may refuse to provide security, forcing the buyer to pull out.