I would like to let out my leasehold apartment in East Barnet. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask her. Is permission from the freeholder required?

Even though your last East Barnet conveyancing lawyer is not available you can review your lease to see if it allows you to sublet the premises. The accepted inference is that if the deeds are silent, subletting is permitted. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you need to obtain consent via your landlord or other appropriate person prior to subletting. This means that you cannot sublet without prior consent. The consent is not allowed to be unreasonably refused ore delayed. If your lease prohibits you from letting out the property you will need to ask your landlord for their consent.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold house in East Barnet. Conveyancing and Birmingham Midshires mortgage organised. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the freehold. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1991. The conveyancing solicitor in East Barnet who previously acted has long since retired.Any advice?

The first thing you should do is make enquiries of HMLR to be sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is indeed the new freeholder. There is no need to instruct a East Barnet conveyancing practitioner to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for £3. You should note that in any event, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

What are your top tips when it comes to finding a East Barnet conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

When appointing a solicitor for your lease extension (regardless if they are a East Barnet conveyancing practice) it is imperative that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We advise that you speak with two or three firms including non East Barnet conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be useful:

• How familiar is the firm with lease extension legislation?
• Can they put you in touch with client in East Barnet who can give a testimonial?

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in East Barnet from the point of view of speeding up the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in East Barnet can be bypassed where 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.
• Many landlords or managing agents in East Barnet charge for supplying management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should find out the actual amount of the charges. The management information can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus reducing delays. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most frequent cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in East Barnet.
• Some East Barnet leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this is the case, it would be prudent to notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. Any 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 actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their lawyers.
• If there is a history of conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is essential that these are resolved before the property is put on the market. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where there is a current dispute. You may need to swallow your pride and pay any arrears of service charge or resolve 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 are still duty bound to disclose particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to present the dispute as over rather than ongoing.
• If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should make sure that you are holding the original share document. Arranging a replacement share certificate can be a time consuming formality and slows down many a East Barnet conveyancing deal. Where a new share certificate is necessary, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (where relevant) for this at the earliest opportunity.

I have attempted and failed to negotiate with my landlord to extend my lease without success. Can I apply to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal? Can you recommend a East Barnet conveyancing firm to assist?

You certainly can. We are happy to put you in touch with a East Barnet conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement decision for a East Barnet property is 23 Beaconsfield Road in July 2013. The Tribunals decided that the amount payable was £31,203 for the freehold. This case affected 2 flats. The unexpired lease term was 70.31 years.

In relation to leasehold conveyancing in East Barnet what are the most common lease defects?

Leasehold conveyancing in East Barnet is not unique. Most leases are individual and legal mistakes in the legal wording can result in certain provisions are missing. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the building
• Insurance obligations
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

A defective lease can cause issues when trying to sell a property primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Accord Mortgages Ltd, The Mortgage Works, and TSB all have express conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is problematic they may refuse to provide security, forcing the buyer to withdraw.

East Barnet Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - A selection of Questions you should consider Prior to Purchasing

It would be prudent to discover as much as possible concerning the managing agents as they will either make your life much simpler or problematic. Being a leasehold owner you are frequently at the mercy of the managing agents both financially and when it comes to every day matters such as the upkeep of the communal areas. Don't be shy to ask other people what they think of their management. In conclusion, find out the dates that the maintenance fees are due to the managing agents and specifically what it includes.