Jane (my partner) and I may need to let out our Belmont basement flat for a while due to a career opportunity. We instructed a Belmont conveyancing firm in 2002 but they have closed and we did not have the foresight to get any advice as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?

The lease governs relations between the landlord and you the leaseholder; specifically, it will indicate if subletting is prohibited, or permitted but only subject to certain conditions. The rule is that if the lease contains no expres ban or restriction, subletting is allowed. Most leases in Belmont do not contain strict prohibition on subletting – such a clause would adversely affect the market value the property. Instead, there is usually a basic requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly sending a duplicate of the sublease.

There are only 72 years unexpired on my flat in Belmont. I now wish to get lease extension but my freeholder is can not be found. What should I do?

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 enable the lease to be granted an extra 90 years by the Court. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you have used your best endeavours to locate the freeholder. In some cases a specialist should be useful to try and locate and to produce an expert document to be used as evidence that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a property lawyer in relation to proving the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court covering Belmont.

I have just started marketing my basement flat in Belmont.Conveyancing has not commenced but I have just had a half-yearly service charge demand – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should clear the service charge as normal because all ground rent and service charges will be apportioned on completion, so you will be reimbursed by the buyer for the period running from after the completion date to the next payment date. Most managing agents will not acknowledge the buyer until the service charges have been paid and are up to date so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

Back In 2001, I bought a leasehold flat in Belmont. Conveyancing and Coventry Building Society mortgage went though with no issue. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1993. The conveyancing practitioner in Belmont who acted for me is not around.Any advice?

The first thing you should do is make enquiries of HMLR to be sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. It is not necessary to instruct a Belmont conveyancing firm to do this as it can be done on-line for a few pound. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

What advice can you give us when it comes to choosing a Belmont conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?

When appointing a solicitor for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Belmont conveyancing firm) it is imperative that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We recommend that you speak with several firms including non Belmont conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be of use:

• How experienced is the firm with lease extension legislation?

I have given up negotiating a lease extension in Belmont. Can this matter be resolved via the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal?

Where there is a missing landlord or where there is disagreement about what the lease extension should cost, under the relevant legislation you can apply to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) to assess the price payable.

An example of a Lease Extension case for a Belmont premises is 33 The Maisonettes Alberta Avenue in June 2014. the Tribunal decided that the premium payable for the grant of a new lease be the sum of £20,680 (Twenty Thousand six hundred and eighty pounds). This case affected 1 flat. The unexpired lease term was 60.43 years.