Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Camberwell. Before I set the wheels in motion I want to be sure as to the number of years remaining on the lease.

Assuming the lease is registered - and 99.9% are in Camberwell - 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.

I want to rent out my leasehold flat in Camberwell. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask her. Do I need to ask my freeholder for their consent?

Notwithstanding that your previous Camberwell conveyancing lawyer is no longer around you can check your lease to see if you are permitted to let out the premises. The rule is that if the deeds are silent, subletting is permitted. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you need to obtain permission via your landlord or some other party in advance of subletting. This means you not allowed to sublet in the absence of prior permission. Such consent must not not be unreasonably withheld. If the lease does not allow you to sublet you should ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

I am employed by a busy estate agency in Camberwell where we see a few leasehold sales jeopardised due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received conflicting advice from local Camberwell conveyancing firms. Could you confirm whether the seller of a flat can commence the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the proposed purchaser can avoid having to wait 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or simultaneously with completion of the sale.

Alternatively, it may be possible 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 offer any advice when it comes to choosing a Camberwell conveyancing firm to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

When appointing a conveyancer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Camberwell conveyancing firm) it is imperative that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We suggested that you make enquires with two or three firms including non Camberwell conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions might be helpful:

• Can they put you in touch with client in Camberwell who can give a testimonial?

What are the legal fees for lease extension conveyancing?

All being well we will complete the disposal of our £500000 flat in Camberwell next Wednesday . The management company has quoted £420 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and previous years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge such fees for a leasehold conveyance in Camberwell?

Camberwell conveyancing on leasehold apartments nine out of ten times necessitates fees being invoiced by management companies :

• Completing pre-exchange questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Camberwell
• 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 Camberwell leasehold property is £350. For Camberwell 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 obliged to supply answers.

I inherited a a ground floor purpose built flat in Camberwell. In the absence of agreement between myself and the freeholder, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal make a decision on the premium payable for the purchase of the freehold?

if there is a absentee freeholder or where there is disagreement about the premium for a lease extension, under the relevant legislation it is possible to make an application to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal to judgment on the premium.

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement case for a Camberwell property is 28 Valmar Road in June 2013. this was a case with an absentee freeholder. As a result the leaseholders applied to the Lambeth County Court for an order dispensing with the giving of a notice of claim. On 25 April 2013 District Judge Zimmels made a vesting order and directed that the matter should be transferred to this tribunal to determine the premium. The tribunal concluded on a fi
gure of £1,125 This case was in relation to 3 flats. The remaining number of years on the lease was 968 years.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Camberwell