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

Your lease dictates the relationship between the freeholder and you the flat owner; specifically, it will set out if subletting is prohibited, or permitted but only subject to certain caveats. The rule is that if the lease contains no specific ban or restriction, subletting is permitted. The majority of leases in Erith do not contain strict prohibition on subletting – such a provision would undoubtedly devalue the flat. Instead, there is usually simply a requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly sending a duplicate of the sublease.

Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only Seventy years remaining on my lease in Erith. I need to extend my lease but my freeholder is can not be found. What options are available to me?

If you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be extended by the Court. You will be obliged to prove that you or your lawyers have made all reasonable attempts to find the landlord. For most situations an enquiry agent may be useful to conduct investigations and to produce an expert document which can be accepted by the court as proof that the landlord is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a conveyancer in relation to devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court covering Erith.

I have just started marketing my basement apartment in Erith.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just had a half-yearly maintenance charge demand – what should I do?

The sensible thing to do is pay the invoice as normal because all ground rent and service charges will be apportioned on completion, so you will be reimbursed by the buyer for the period running from after the completion date to the next payment date. Most managing agents will not acknowledge the buyer unless the service charges have been paid and are up to date so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that appears to meet my requirements, at a reasonable price which is making it all the more appealing. I have since found out that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are particular concerns purchasing a house with a leasehold title in Erith. Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed. Will my lawyers set out the risks of buying a leasehold house in Erith ?

The majority of houses in Erith are freehold rather than leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area can assist with the conveyancing process. We note that you are purchasing in Erith in which case you should be looking for a Erith conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they have experience in transacting 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 to the property. The lease will likely included provisions such as obtaining the freeholder’spermission to carry out changes to the property. You may also be required to pay a service charge towards the maintenance of the communal areas where the property is part of an estate. Your solicitor should appraise you on the various issues.

Back In 2002, I bought a leasehold flat in Erith. Conveyancing and Alliance & Leicester mortgage are in place. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1992. The conveyancing solicitor in Erith who acted for me is not around.What should I do?

The first thing you should do is contact the Land Registry to be sure that this person is in fact the new freeholder. You do not need to incur the fees of a Erith conveyancing lawyer to do this as it can be done on-line for less than a fiver. Rest assured that regardless, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

Having spent months of correspondence we are unable to agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Erith. Can we issue an application to the Residential Property Tribunal Service?

Absolutely. We can put you in touch with a Erith conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Erith property 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 affected 13 flats. The remaining number of years on the lease was 76 years.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Erith - Examples of Queries Prior to Purchasing

Who takes responsibility for maintaining and repairing the building? You should want to find out as much as possible about the managing agents as they will either make living at the property much easier or much more difficult. As the owner of a leasehold property you will be in the clutches of the managing agents from a financial perspective and when it comes to day to day issues such as the tidiness of the common parts. Don't be afraid to ask other people what they think of them. Finally, be sure you discover the dates that you are obliged pay the maintenance charge to the managing agents and specifically what it includes.