My fiance and I may need to rent out our Bloomsbury garden flat temporarily due to taking a sabbatical. We instructed a Bloomsbury conveyancing firm in 2002 but they have closed and we did not think at the time seek any advice as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?

Even though your last Bloomsbury conveyancing lawyer is no longer available you can check your lease to check if you are permitted to let out the premises. The accepted inference is that if the deeds are non-specific, subletting is permitted. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you need to obtain consent from your landlord or some other party prior to subletting. This means that you cannot sublet in the absence of first obtaining consent. The consent should not be unreasonably withheld. If your lease prohibits you from letting out the property you will need to ask your landlord for their consent.

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a couple of maisonettes in Bloomsbury both have about forty five years remaining on the lease term. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

There are no two ways about it. A leasehold apartment in Bloomsbury is a deteriorating asset as a result of the shortening lease. The closer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it reduces the value of the premises. The majority of purchasers and mortgage companies, leases with less than eighty years become less and less attractive. On a more upbeat note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the premises for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of property with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Bloomsbury conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. More often than not it is possible to negotiate informally with the freeholder to extend the lease They may agree to a smaller lump sum and an increase in the ground rent, but to shorter extension terms in return. You need to ensure that the agreed terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.

Last month I purchased a leasehold flat in Bloomsbury. Am I liable to pay 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 ensure 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).

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Bloomsbury with the intention of speeding up the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Bloomsbury can be avoided where you appoint lawyers the minute your agents start marketing the property and ask them to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers solicitors.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s consent? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Bloomsbury leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or laying down wooden flooring calls for a licence from the Landlord approving such alterations. Where you dont have the approvals to hand do not contact the landlord without checking with your lawyer before hand.

If all goes to plan we aim to complete our sale of a £300000 garden flat in Bloomsbury on Friday in a week. The management company has quoted £348 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and previous years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge an administration fee for a flat conveyance in Bloomsbury?

Bloomsbury conveyancing on leasehold apartments often involves the purchaser’s conveyancer sending enquiries for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is not legally bound to respond to these enquiries the majority will be willing to do so. They are at liberty invoice a reasonable charge for answering enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average fee for the paperwork that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some transactions it is above £800. The administration charge required by the landlord must be sent together with a summary of rights and obligations in relation to administration fees, otherwise the invoice is not strictly payable. In reality you have no option but to pay whatever is requested of you if you want to exchange contracts with the buyer.

My wife and I have hit a brick wall in trying to purchase the freehold in Bloomsbury. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal adjudicate on premiums?

Absolutely. We can put you in touch with a Bloomsbury conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Bloomsbury residence is Flat 89 Trinity Court Grays Inn Road in February 2013. the Tribunal found that the premium to be paid by the tenant on the grant of a new lease, in accordance with section 56 and Schedule 13 to the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 should be £36,229. This case was in relation to 1 flat. The unexpired term was 66.8 years.