My fiance and I may need to let out our Enfield Town garden flat temporarily due to taking a sabbatical. We instructed a Enfield Town conveyancing practice in 2001 but they have closed and we did not have the foresight to get any advice as to whether the lease prohibits the subletting of the flat. How do we find out?

Your lease dictates the relationship between the landlord and you the leaseholder; in particular, it will indicate if subletting is not allowed, or permitted but only subject to certain caveats. The rule is that if the lease contains no expres ban or restriction, subletting is permitted. Most leases in Enfield Town do not contain an absolute prevention of subletting – such a clause would undoubtedly devalue the flat. Instead, there is usually simply a requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly sending a copy of the sublease.

I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that seems to tick a lot of boxes, at a reasonable figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have just been informed that the title is leasehold as opposed to freehold. I would have thought that there are issues purchasing a house with a leasehold title in Enfield Town. Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been appointed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Enfield Town are freehold rather than leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can help the conveyancing process. We note that you are buying in Enfield Town in which case you should be looking for a Enfield Town conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they are used to advising on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the unexpired lease term. Being a lessee you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions such as requiring the landlord’sconsent to conduct alterations. You may also be required to pay a maintenance charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the house is located on an estate. Your lawyer should advise you fully on all the issues.

Back In 2001, I bought a leasehold house in Enfield Town. Conveyancing and Nationwide Building Society mortgage went though with no issue. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1992. The conveyancing practitioner in Enfield Town who previously acted has now retired.Any advice?

The first thing you should do is make enquiries of the Land Registry to make sure that this person is in fact the new freeholder. You do not need to instruct a Enfield Town conveyancing practitioner to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for £3. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I've recently bought a leasehold house in Enfield Town. Do I have any liability for service charges relating to a period prior to my ownership?

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. It is an essential part of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to be sure 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).

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Enfield Town from the perspective of saving time on the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Enfield Town can be reduced where you get in touch lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and ask them to put together the leasehold information needed by the purchasers’ solicitors.
• The majority landlords or Management Companies in Enfield Town charge for providing management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should find out the actual amount of the charges. The management pack sought as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. The typical amount of time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most frequent reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Enfield Town.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s permission? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Enfield Town state that internal structural alterations or addition of wooden flooring necessitate a licence from the Landlord acquiescing to such works. If you fail to have the consents in place do not communicate with the landlord without checking with your conveyancer first.
• Some Enfield Town leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, it would be prudent to notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain 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 conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are resolved prior to the flat being marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where there is a current dispute. You may need to swallow your pride and discharge any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. 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 purchasers, but it is better to reveal the dispute as historic as opposed to unresolved.

Having spent years of correspondence we simply can't agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Enfield Town. Does the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal have jurisdiction to calculate the appropriate figures?

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

An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a Enfield Town premises is First Floor Flat 109 Lyndhurst Road in May 2010. Following a vesting order by Edmonton County Court on 29th October 2009 the Tribunal decided on a figure of £5,012 for a lease extension. This case was in relation to 1 flat. The unexpired lease term was 81.79 years.

Enfield Town Leasehold Conveyancing - Sample of Questions you should ask before buying

It would be prudent to investigate if there is anything that is prohibited in the lease. For instance some leases prohibit pets being permitted in certain buildings in Enfield Town. If you like the flatin Enfield Town but your cat can’t make the move with you then you will be presented with a hard decision. How many years remain on the lease?