I am intending to rent out my leasehold flat in Bayswater. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask her. Do I need to ask my freeholder for permission?

Even though your previous Bayswater conveyancing solicitor is no longer available you can check your lease to check if it allows you to sublet the property. The rule is that if the deeds are silent, subletting is permitted. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you need to seek consent via your landlord or some other party in advance of subletting. The net result is you not allowed to sublet in the absence of prior permission. Such consent should not be unreasonably turned down. If the lease prohibits you from subletting the property you will need to ask your landlord for their consent.

I only have 72 years unexpired on my flat in Bayswater. I am keen to extend my lease but my landlord is can not be found. What options are available to me?

On the basis that you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for an order 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 prove that you or your lawyers have used your best endeavours to locate the freeholder. On the whole an enquiry agent may be useful to carry out a search and to produce a report to be used as evidence that the landlord can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a property lawyer in relation to devolving into the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Bayswater.

I've recently bought a leasehold property in Bayswater. 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 lessee 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 work for a reputable estate agent office in Bayswater where we see a number of leasehold sales put at risk as a result of short leases. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Bayswater conveyancing firms. Can you confirm whether the owner of a flat can commence the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

As long as the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser need not have to wait 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed before, or simultaneously with completion of the sale.

An alternative approach is to agree the lease extension with the freeholder 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.

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Bayswater with the aim of expediting the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Bayswater can be reduced if you appoint lawyers the minute your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold documentation needed by the purchasers’ representatives.
• The majority landlords or Management Companies in Bayswater charge for providing management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the fee that they propose to charge. The management information sought on or before finding a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The average time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most usual cause of frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Bayswater.

I am the registered owner of a ground-floor 1960’s flat in Bayswater. In the absence of agreement between myself and the landlord, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal make a decision on the sum due for the purchase of the freehold?

You certainly can. We are happy to put you in touch with a Bayswater conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a Bayswater premises is 93 Oakwood Court in June 2010. the LVT determined that the premium to be paid for the new lease was £492,083, This case was in relation to 1 flat. The the number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 37.79 years.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Bayswater