I would like to let out my leasehold flat in Chadwell Heath. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask him. Do I need to ask my freeholder for permission?

Even though your previous Chadwell Heath conveyancing lawyer is not available you can review your lease to check if you are permitted to let out the property. The rule is that if the lease is silent, subletting is allowed. There may be a precondition that you need to seek consent via your landlord or some other party in advance of subletting. This means that you cannot sublet without prior consent. Such consent should not be unreasonably withheld. If your lease prohibits you from subletting the property you will need to ask your landlord for their consent.

I only have Fifty years unexpired on my lease in Chadwell Heath. I am keen to get lease extension but my freeholder is missing. 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 for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be granted an extra 90 years by the Court. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have done all that could be expected to locate the lessor. In some cases a specialist should be helpful to carry out a search and prepare a report which can be used as proof that the landlord is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a property lawyer both on investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court covering Chadwell Heath.

Expecting to exchange soon on a basement flat in Chadwell Heath. Conveyancing lawyers assured me that they will have a report out to me on Monday. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Chadwell Heath should include some of the following:

• Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, landlord

Are pets allowed in the flat?

Ground rent - how much and when you need to pay, and also know whether this will change in the future

An explanation as to the provision in the lease to pay service charges - with regard to both the building, and the more general rights a leaseholder has

Whether your lease has a provision for a reserve fund?

Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your property and do you know what it means in practice?

Responsibility for repairing the window frames For details of the information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Chadwell Heath please ask your lawyer in advance of your conveyancing in Chadwell Heath

Back In 2005, I bought a leasehold house in Chadwell Heath. Conveyancing and Barnsley Building Society mortgage went though with no issue. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1997. The conveyancing practitioner in Chadwell Heath who acted for me is not around.Do I pay?

First contact the Land Registry to make sure that this person is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. It is not necessary to instruct a Chadwell Heath conveyancing lawyer to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for £3. Rest assured that regardless, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on our sale of a £375000 apartment in Chadwell Heath on Friday in a week. The management company has quoted £420 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and previous years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in Chadwell Heath?

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

• Answering pre-contract questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Chadwell Heath
• Supplying insurance information
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your solicitor will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Chadwell Heath leasehold property is £350. For Chadwell Heath 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 the information.

I have given up trying to purchase the freehold in Chadwell Heath. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal adjudicate on premiums?

if there is a missing landlord or where there is disagreement about the premium for a lease extension, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) to arrive at the sum to be paid.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Chadwell Heath premises is 49 Aldborough Road South in July 2012. The Tribunal decided that the premium payable for the grant of the new lease was £13,925 This case related to 1 flat. The remaining number of years on the lease was 61.36 years.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Chadwell Heath