I am intending to rent out my leasehold flat in Crayford. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask him. Do I need to ask my freeholder for permission?

Your lease governs relations between the landlord and you the leaseholder; specifically, it will set out if subletting is not allowed, or permitted but only subject to certain conditions. The rule is that if the lease contains no specific ban or restriction, subletting is permitted. The majority of leases in Crayford do not prevent subletting altogether – such a clause would adversely affect the market value the flat. In most cases there is simply a requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly sending a duplicate of the tenancy agreement.

Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only Seventy years remaining on my flat in Crayford. I am keen to extend my lease but my landlord is missing. What are my options?

If 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 extended by the Court. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have made all reasonable attempts to locate the lessor. For most situations a specialist should be helpful to conduct investigations and to produce a report which can be accepted by the court as evidence that the freeholder can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a conveyancer in relation to proving the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Crayford.

I work for a reputable estate agent office in Crayford where we have experienced a few flat sales put at risk as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received conflicting advice from local Crayford conveyancing solicitors. Could you confirm whether the vendor of a flat can initiate the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

As long as 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 proposed purchaser need not have to sit tight for 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 disposal of the property.

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 purchaser.

What advice can you give us when it comes to appointing a Crayford conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

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

• How familiar is the practice with lease extension legislation?
• What are the charges for lease extension conveyancing?

I have tried to negotiate informally with with my landlord to extend my lease without any joy. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal decide on such issues? Can you recommend a Crayford conveyancing firm to assist?

Where there is a missing freeholder or if there is dispute about what the lease extension should cost, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal to calculate the premium.

An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a Crayford premises 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 was in relation to 13 flats. The the unexpired residue of the current lease was 76 years.

What makes a Crayford lease unmortgageable?

Leasehold conveyancing in Crayford is not unique. Most leases is drafted differently and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain sections are wrong. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the building
• A duty to insure the building
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

A defective lease can cause problems when trying to sell a property as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Halifax, The Royal Bank of Scotland, and Barclays Direct all have very detailed conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is defective they may refuse to grant the mortgage, forcing the buyer to withdraw.

I am the registered owner of a studio flat in Crayford, conveyancing having been completed in 2012. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Corresponding flats in Crayford with over 90 years remaining are worth £259,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 charged once a year. The lease ceases on 21st October 2096

With 70 years left to run the likely cost is going to span between £14,300 and £16,400 plus costs.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to advice on a more accurate figure without more comprehensive investigations. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt other concerns that need to be considered and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action placing reliance on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.