I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Aldgate. Before diving in I require certainty as to the unexpired term of the lease.

Assuming the lease is registered - and 99.9% are in Aldgate - then the leasehold title will always include the short particulars of the lease, namely the date; the term; and the original parties. From a conveyancing perspective such details then enable any prospective buyer and lender to confirm that any lease they are looking at is the one relevant to that title.For any other purpose, such as confirming how long the term was granted for and calculating what is left, then the register should be sufficient on it's own.

Harry (my fiance) and I may need to sub-let our Aldgate ground floor flat for a while due to a career opportunity. We instructed a Aldgate conveyancing practice in 2003 but they have since shut and we did not think at the time seek any guidance as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?

Your lease dictates the relationship between the freeholder and you the leaseholder; specifically, it will say 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 allowed. The majority of leases in Aldgate do not contain an absolute prevention of subletting – such a clause would adversely affect the market value the flat. Instead, there is usually simply a requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly sending a duplicate of the tenancy agreement.

I am hoping to sign contracts shortly on a ground floor flat in Aldgate. Conveyancing solicitors inform me that they will have a report out to me on Monday. What should I be looking out for?

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

• The total extent of the premises. This will be the flat itself but might include a loft or cellar if applicable.

Setting out your legal entitlements in respect of the communal areas in the building.For example, does the lease contain a right of way over a path or hallways?

You should be told what constitutes a Nuisance in the lease

Whether your lease has a provision for a reserve fund?

Repair and maintenance of the flat

The landlord’s obligations to repair and maintain the building. It is important that you know who is responsible for the repair and maintenance of every part of the building

What the implications are if you breach a clause of your lease? For details of the information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Aldgate please enquire of your solicitor in advance of your conveyancing in Aldgate

Last month I purchased a leasehold flat in Aldgate. Am I liable to pay 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. However, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element 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 sale of our £475000 garden flat in Aldgate in six days. The management company has quoted £396 for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and 3 years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge such fees for a leasehold conveyance in Aldgate?

Aldgate conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes typically necessitates fees being levied by landlords agents :

• Addressing conveyancing due diligence questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Aldgate
• 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 Aldgate leasehold premises is £350. For Aldgate 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 am the proprietor of a second floor flat in Aldgate. In the absence of agreement between myself and the freeholder, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal make a decision on the amount due for the purchase of the freehold?

in cases where there is a absentee landlord or where there is dispute about what the lease extension should cost, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 it is possible to make an application to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) to decide the premium.

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement case for a Aldgate premises is 1-41 Royal Tower Lodge 40 Cartwright Street in April 2013. the tribunal adding the agreed value of capitalised ground rents and the reversion the price to be paid for the freehold was £1,187,000 This case related to 41 flats. The the unexpired residue of the current lease was 107 years.