My partner and I may need to rent out our Bulls Cross 1st floor flat for a while due to a career opportunity. We used a Bulls Cross 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 permits subletting. How do we find out?

Notwithstanding that your last Bulls Cross conveyancing solicitor is not around you can check your lease to check if it allows you to sublet the premises. The rule is that if the deeds are silent, subletting is allowed. There may be a precondition that you are obliged to obtain permission from your landlord or some other party before subletting. The net result is that you cannot sublet without first obtaining consent. The consent is not allowed to be unreasonably refused ore delayed. If the lease prohibits you from subletting the property you will need to ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

I have recently realised that I have 68 years remaining on my lease in Bulls Cross. I now want to extend my lease but my landlord is can not be found. What options are available to me?

On the basis that you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be granted an extra 90 years by the Court. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you have done all that could be expected to locate the landlord. For most situations an enquiry agent may be helpful to try and locate and prepare a report which can be used as evidence that the landlord is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer both on proving the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing Bulls Cross.

I am looking at a two maisonettes in Bulls Cross both have about fifty years left on the leases. Do I need to be concerned?

A lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the property for a prescribed time frame. As the lease shortens the marketability of the lease deteriorate and it becomes more expensive to acquire a lease extension. This is why it is generally wise to increase the term of the lease. It is often difficult to sell a property with a short lease because mortgage companies less inclined to grant a loan on such properties. Lease extension can be a protracted process. We recommend you seek professional help from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this field

I've recently bought a leasehold flat in Bulls Cross. Do I have any liability for service charges relating to a period prior to my ownership?

In a situation 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. 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).

Completion in due on our sale of a £425000 garden flat in Bulls Cross in just under a week. The managing agents has quoted £300 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and 3 years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge an administration fee for a leasehold conveyance in Bulls Cross?

Bulls Cross conveyancing on leasehold flats typically necessitates administration charges levied by managing agents :

• Completing conveyancing due diligence questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Bulls Cross
• 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 Bulls Cross leasehold premises is £350. For Bulls Cross 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 required to supply answers.

Notwithstanding our best endeavours, we have been unsuccessful in trying to reach an agreement for a lease extension in Bulls Cross. Can this matter be resolved via the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal?

if there is a absentee freeholder or where there is disagreement about the premium for a lease extension, under the relevant legislation you can apply to the LVT to calculate the premium.

An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a Bulls Cross residence is First Floor Flat 109 Lyndhurst Road in May 2010. Following a vesting order by Edmonton County Court on 29th October 2009 the Tribunal decided on a figure of £5,012 for a lease extension. This case affected 1 flat. The the unexpired term as at the valuation date was 81.79 years.