I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Bermondsey. Before I set the wheels in motion I would like to find out the number of years remaining on the lease.

If the lease is registered - and almost all are in Bermondsey - then the leasehold title will always include the basic details 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 Bermondsey 1st floor flat for a while due to a new job. We instructed a Bermondsey conveyancing firm in 2004 but they have since shut and we did not think at the time get any advice as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?

A lease dictates relations between the landlord and you the flat owner; in particular, it will set out 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 permitted. The majority of leases in Bermondsey do not prevent strict prohibition on subletting – such a provision would undoubtedly devalue 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 Seventy years unexpired on my flat in Bermondsey. I now wish to get lease extension but my freeholder is absent. 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 enable the lease to be lengthened by the magistrate. You will be obliged to prove that you or your lawyers have used your best endeavours to find the landlord. On the whole an enquiry agent would be helpful to conduct investigations and to produce an expert document to be used as proof that the landlord is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a property lawyer in relation to investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court covering Bermondsey.

I am a negotiator for a busy estate agent office in Bermondsey where we have witnessed a number of leasehold sales put at risk as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Bermondsey conveyancing firms. Could you shed some light as to whether the owner of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities 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 commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means 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 prior to, or at the same time as 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 purchaser.

Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on the sale of our £ 250000 maisonette in Bermondsey next Wednesday . The management company has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and previous years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in Bermondsey?

Bermondsey conveyancing on leasehold apartments usually involves the purchaser’s lawyer submitting questions for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to answer such questions the majority will be content to assist. They are entitled invoice a reasonable administration fee for responding to questions or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average costs for the information that you are referring to is £350, in some transactions it is above £800. The management information fee invoiced by the landlord must be accompanied by a synopsis of rights and obligations in respect of administration charges, without which the charge is technically not due. In reality one has little choice but to pay whatever is requested of you should you wish to exchange contracts with the buyer.

My wife and I have hit a brick wall in trying to purchase the freehold in Bermondsey. Can this matter be resolved via the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal?

Where there is a missing landlord or if there is dispute about what the lease extension should cost, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal to judgment on the sum to be paid.

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement decision for a Bermondsey residence 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 unexpired term was 107 years.

Bermondsey Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Queries before buying

Is the freehold reversion owned jointly by the tenants? What is the name of the managing agents?