Experts for Leasehold Conveyancing in Croydon

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While any conveyancing practice can theoretically deal with your leasehold conveyancing in Croydon, your mortgage provider may not be willing to work with them if the firm are not on their list of approved solicitors for conveyancing

Questions and Answers: Croydon leasehold conveyancing

My wife and I may need to rent out our Croydon ground floor flat for a while due to taking a sabbatical. We used a Croydon conveyancing practice in 2003 but they have since shut and we did not have the foresight to seek any advice as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?

Even though your previous Croydon conveyancing lawyer is no longer available you can check your lease to see if it allows you to sublet the premises. The accepted inference is that if the deeds are silent, subletting is allowed. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you are obliged to obtain permission from your landlord or other appropriate person before subletting. This means that you cannot sublet without prior consent. The consent is not allowed to be unreasonably turned down. If your lease prohibits you from letting out the property you will need to ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

Due to exchange soon on a leasehold property in Croydon. Conveyancing lawyers assured me that they are sending me a report on Monday. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

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

  • Does the lease prohibit wood flooring?
  • Are you allowed to have a pet in the flat?
  • 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 sinking fund?
  • Changes to the flat (alterations and additions)
  • 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 a comprehensive list of information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Croydon please ask your solicitor in ahead of your conveyancing in Croydon

    • I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that seems to meet my requirements, at a great figure which is making it more attractive. I have subsequently found out that the title is leasehold as opposed to freehold. I would have thought that there are particular concerns buying a leasehold house in Croydon. Conveyancing advisers have are about to be appointed. Will my lawyers set out the risks of buying a leasehold house in Croydon ?

    Most houses in Croydon are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local conveyancer used to dealing with such properties who can assist with the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are purchasing in Croydon so you should seriously consider looking for a Croydon conveyancing practitioner and check that they have experience in advising on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the unexpired lease term. As a leaseholder you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions for example obtaining the landlord’spermission to conduct changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a service charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the house is part of an estate. Your lawyer will advise you fully on all the issues.

    I am employed by a long established estate agency in Croydon where we have experienced a few flat sales jeopardised due to short leases. I have received contradictory information from local Croydon conveyancing solicitors. Please can you clarify whether the vendor of a flat can commence the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

    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. 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 needs to be completed before, or at the same time as 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 purchaser.

    What advice can you give us when it comes to finding a Croydon conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

    When appointing a solicitor for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Croydon conveyancing firm) it is imperative that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We suggested that you talk with several firms including non Croydon 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 useful:

    • If they are not ALEP accredited then why not?
  • Can they put you in touch with client in Croydon who can give a testimonial?

    • We have reached the end of our tether in trying to purchase the freehold in Croydon. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal adjudicate on premiums?

    Most certainly. We can put you in touch with a Croydon conveyancing firm who can help.

    An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement matter before the tribunal for a Croydon property is 29 Woodstock Road in April 2014. the Tribunal determined that the premiums to be paid into court in respect of the purchase of the freehold registered at HMLR under Title N0.SY3997 should be £7,217. This case was in relation to 4 flats. The the unexpired residue of the current lease was 98 years.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Croydon