I am intending to sublet my leasehold apartment in Canary Wharf. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask her. Do I need to ask my freeholder for permission?

Your lease governs relations between the freeholder and you the leaseholder; specifically, it will indicate if subletting is banned, or permitted but only subject to certain caveats. The rule is that if the lease contains no specific ban or restriction, subletting is allowed. Most leases in Canary Wharf do not contain subletting altogether – such a provision would undoubtedly devalue the property. Instead, there is usually a basic requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly supplying a duplicate of the tenancy agreement.

There are only Fifty years unexpired on my flat in Canary Wharf. I am keen to get lease extension but my landlord is can not be found. What are my options?

On the basis that you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be extended by the Court. You will be obliged to prove that you have done all that could be expected to find the landlord. In some cases a specialist would be useful to conduct investigations and prepare an expert document which can be used as proof that the landlord is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a solicitor both on devolving into the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Canary Wharf.

I work for a long established estate agency in Canary Wharf where we see a number of flat sales put at risk as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received inconsistent advice from local Canary Wharf conveyancing solicitors. Can you shed some light as to whether the seller of a flat can instigate the lease extension formalities 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 kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the buyer can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed before, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

An alternative approach is 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 finding a Canary Wharf conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?

When appointing a property lawyer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Canary Wharf conveyancing practice) it is essential that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We advise that you talk with two or three firms including non Canary Wharf conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be of use:

• How familiar is the practice with lease extension legislation?
• Can they put you in touch with client in Canary Wharf who can give a testimonial?

If all goes to plan we aim to complete the sale of our £ 250000 maisonette in Canary Wharf next week. The freeholder has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and previous years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge an administration fee for a leasehold conveyance in Canary Wharf?

For the majority of leasehold sales in Canary Wharf conveyancing will involve, queries regarding the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :

• Addressing pre-exchange questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Canary Wharf
• 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 lawyer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Canary Wharf leasehold premises is £350. For Canary Wharf 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 the information.

I have given up negotiating a lease extension in Canary Wharf. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal adjudicate on premiums?

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

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement decision for a Canary Wharf flat is 12, 14 & 16 Hull Close in May 2010. the Tribunal determined that the premium payable for the acquisition of the freehold to the subject premises was the sum of £18,300 This case affected 3 flats. The the number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 101.61 years.

Canary Wharf Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Sample of Queries Prior to Purchasing

Make sure you investigate if there is anything that is prohibited in the lease. For example plenty of leases prohibit pets being permitted in in a block in Canary Wharf. If you love the flatin Canary Wharf yet your cat can’t live with you then you will be presented with a hard compromise. Does the lease contain onerous restrictions?