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

Notwithstanding that your last Earls Court conveyancing lawyer is no longer around you can review your lease to check if it allows you to sublet the property. The rule is that if the deeds are silent, subletting is allowed. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you need to seek permission via your landlord or some other party in advance of subletting. This means that you cannot sublet in the absence of prior permission. Such consent is not allowed to be unreasonably withheld. If the 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 Earls Court. Conveyancing solicitors inform me that they are sending me a report within the next couple of days. What should I be looking out for?

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

• You should receive a copy of the lease

Does the lease prohibit wood flooring?

Will you be prohibited or prevented from having pets in the property?

Does the lease prevent you from letting out the flat, or working from home

Ground rent - how much and when you need to pay, and also know whether this is subject to change

Repair and maintenance of the flat

The landlord’s obligations to repair and maintain the building. It is important that you know who is responsible for the repair and maintenance of every part of the building For a comprehensive list of information to be included in your report on your leasehold property in Earls Court please enquire of your conveyancer in advance of your conveyancing in Earls Court

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a couple of maisonettes in Earls Court which have in the region of 50 years left on the leases. Will this present a problem?

There are plenty of short leases in Earls Court. The lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the premises for a prescribed time frame. As a lease shortens the marketability of the lease reduces and results in it becoming more costly to extend the lease. This is why it is advisable to extend the lease term. Sometimes it is difficult to sell a property with a short lease as mortgage lenders less inclined to grant a loan on such properties. Lease extension can be a difficult process. We advise that you seek professional help from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this area

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Earls Court from the point of view of expediting the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Earls Court can be reduced if you get in touch lawyers the minute you market your property and request that they start to collate the leasehold information needed by the buyers lawyers.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s permission? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Earls Court leases often stipulate that internal structural changes or addition of wooden flooring calls for a licence from the Landlord consenting to such alterations. If you dont have the paperwork in place do not communicate with the landlord without contacting your conveyancer in advance.

A minority of Earls Court leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand financial (bank) and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are financially capable of paying the annual service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their lawyers.

If there is a history of any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are settled before the property is marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where there is an ongoing dispute. You may need to swallow your pride and discharge any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal details of the dispute to the buyers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as historic as opposed to unresolved.

You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but you should double-check by asking your solicitors. A purchaser's lawyer will not be happy to advise their client to where the remaining number of years is below 75 years. In the circumstances it is important at an early stage that you identify whether the lease term requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

Completion in due on our sale of a £275000 maisonette in Earls Court in just under a week. The freeholder has quoted £336 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and previous years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in Earls Court?

Earls Court conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes usually results in administration charges levied by management companies :

• Completing pre-contract questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Earls Court
• 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 Earls Court leasehold property is £350. For Earls Court 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 answers.

I have attempted and failed to negotiate with my landlord for a lease extension without success. Can a leaseholder apply to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal? Can you recommend a Earls Court conveyancing firm to assist?

Absolutely. We are happy to put you in touch with a Earls Court conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement case for a Earls Court premises is 5 Wetherby Gardens in June 2014. the Tribunal concluded that the price to be paid for the freehold of the property was £2,369,452. This case affected 5 flats. The unexpired term was 38.98 years.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Earls Court