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

Even though your previous Crayford conveyancing solicitor is not around you can check your lease to check if you are permitted to let out the premises. The accepted inference is that if the lease is silent, subletting is allowed. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you are obliged to obtain consent via your landlord or other appropriate person before subletting. The net result is that you cannot sublet without prior permission. The consent must not not be unreasonably refused ore delayed. If the lease prohibits you from subletting the property you should ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

I only have 68 years left on my lease in Crayford. I now want to get lease extension but my freeholder is missing. 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 apply to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be lengthened by the magistrate. You will be obliged to prove that you or your lawyers have made all reasonable attempts to locate the lessor. For most situations a specialist would be useful to try and locate and to produce a report which can be used as proof that the freeholder can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a property lawyer in relation to devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Crayford.

Back In 2008, I bought a leasehold flat in Crayford. Conveyancing and Clydesdale mortgage are in place. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the freehold. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1991. The conveyancing practitioner in Crayford who previously acted has now retired.Do I pay?

First contact the Land Registry to make sure that this person is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. You do not need to instruct a Crayford conveyancing firm to do this as it can be done on-line for £3. You should note that in any event, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

I've recently bought a leasehold house in Crayford. Am I liable to pay 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. A critical element 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).

What are your top tips when it comes to choosing a Crayford conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

If you are instructing a conveyancer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Crayford conveyancing firm) it is imperative that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We recommend that you speak with two or three firms including non Crayford conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be useful:

• How many lease extensions has the firm conducted in Crayford in the last 12 months?

We have reached the end of our tether in seeking a lease extension in Crayford. Can this matter be resolved via the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal?

Where there is a absentee landlord or if there is disagreement about the premium for a lease extension, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 it is possible to make an application to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) to make a decision on the price.

An example of a Lease Extension case for a Crayford flat is Various @ Colombus Square in January 2012. the Tribunal calculated the premiums to be paid for new leases for each of the flats in Mariners Walk to be £3822 and the premium to be paid for the new lease of 2 Knights Court to be £4439. This case related to 13 flats. The the number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 76 years.