I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Farringdon. Before I get started I want to be sure as to the remaining lease term.

Assuming the lease is recorded at the land registry - and 99.9% are in Farringdon - then the leasehold title will always include the basic details of the lease, namely the date; the term; and the original parties. From a conveyancing perspective such details then enable any prospective buyer and lender to confirm that any lease they are looking at is the one relevant to that title.For any other purpose, such as confirming how long the term was granted for and calculating what is left, then the register should be sufficient on it's own.

My husband and I may need to sub-let our Farringdon garden flat temporarily due to taking a sabbatical. We instructed a Farringdon conveyancing practice in 2001 but they have since shut and we did not think at the time seek any guidance as to whether the lease permits subletting. How do we find out?

Notwithstanding that your last Farringdon conveyancing lawyer is no longer around you can review your lease to see if it allows you to sublet the premises. The accepted inference is that if the lease is silent, subletting is allowed. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you need to obtain consent from your landlord or other appropriate person prior to subletting. This means you not allowed to sublet without prior permission. The consent should not be unreasonably turned down. If the lease prohibits you from letting out the property you should ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

I own a leasehold house in Farringdon. Conveyancing and Virgin Money mortgage organised. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the freehold. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1998. The conveyancing practitioner in Farringdon who acted for me is not around.Any advice?

The first thing you should do is make enquiries of HMLR to make sure that this person is indeed the new freeholder. You do not need to instruct a Farringdon 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 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

I've recently bought a leasehold house in Farringdon. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to my ownership?

In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. Strange as it may seem, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element 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).

I work for a long established estate agent office in Farringdon where we have witnessed a few flat sales derailed due to short leases. I have received conflicting advice from local Farringdon conveyancing firms. Could you clarify whether the seller of a flat can commence the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

As long as the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the buyer need not have to sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

Alternatively, it may be possible to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord 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.

I have attempted and failed to negotiate with my landlord for a lease extension without any joy. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal decide on such issues? Can you recommend a Farringdon conveyancing firm to represent me?

Where there is a missing landlord or where there is dispute about the premium for a lease extension, under the relevant statutes you can apply to the LVT to arrive at the price.

An example of a Lease Extension case for a Farringdon property is Flat 89 Trinity Court Grays Inn Road in February 2013. the Tribunal found that the premium to be paid by the tenant on the grant of a new lease, in accordance with section 56 and Schedule 13 to the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 should be £36,229. This case affected 1 flat. The the number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 66.8 years.