I wish to let out my leasehold apartment in Hadley Wood. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask him. Is permission from the freeholder required?

Your lease dictates the relationship between the freeholder and you the leaseholder; specifically, it will say if subletting is prohibited, or permitted but only subject to certain conditions. The rule is that if the lease contains no expres ban or restriction, subletting is permitted. The majority of leases in Hadley Wood do not prevent subletting altogether – such a provision would undoubtedly devalue the flat. In most cases there is a basic requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly supplying a copy of the sublease.

I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that seems to meet my requirements, at a great price which is making it more attractive. I have since been informed that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are particular concerns buying a leasehold house in Hadley Wood. Conveyancing solicitors have are about to be appointed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Hadley Wood are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area can assist with the conveyancing process. We note that you are purchasing in Hadley Wood so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Hadley Wood conveyancing practitioner and check that they have experience in dealing with leasehold houses. First you will need to check the unexpired lease term. Being a leaseholder you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want to the property. The lease will likely included provisions for example obtaining the landlord’sconsent to conduct changes to the property. You may also be required to pay a contribution towards the maintenance of the communal areas where the property is part of an estate. Your conveyancer should advise you fully on all the issues.

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a two maisonettes in Hadley Wood which have approximately forty five years remaining on the leases. Do I need to be concerned?

There are plenty of short leases in Hadley Wood. The lease is a right to use the premises for a prescribed time frame. As a lease gets shorter the value of the lease decreases and it becomes more expensive to acquire a lease extension. For this reason it is generally wise to increase the term of the lease. Sometimes it is difficult to sell a property with a short lease as mortgage lenders less inclined to grant a loan on properties of this type. Lease extension can be a protracted process. We advise that you get professional help from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this field

I've recently bought a leasehold house in Hadley Wood. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before 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. Strange as it may seem, 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 ensure 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 am a negotiator for a busy estate agency in Hadley Wood where we see a few flat sales jeopardised due to short leases. I have been given contradictory information from local Hadley Wood conveyancing solicitors. Can you confirm whether the vendor of a flat can start the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that the seller has owned the lease 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 wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or at the same time as completion of the sale.

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.

After months of negotiations we simply can't agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Hadley Wood. Can we issue an application to the Residential Property Tribunal Service?

if there is a missing landlord or where there is disagreement about the premium for a lease extension, under the relevant legislation it is possible to make an application to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) to arrive at the sum to be paid.

An example of a Lease Extension case for a Hadley Wood property is Flat 2 2 Netherfield Road in April 2010. The Tribunale held that premium payable for a 90 year extension to the existing Lease should be £7,705. This case related to 1 flat. The the number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 76 years.

Hadley Wood Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Questions you should ask Prior to buying

Where a Hadley Wood lease has fewer than eighty years it will affect the marketability of the apartment. It is worth checking with your mortgage company that they are willing to to proceed given the lease term. Leases with fewer than 80 years remaining means that you will most likely require a lease extension at some point and you need to have some idea of what this will be. For most Hadley Woodlease extensions you will need to own the residence for two years before you are legally able to exercise a lease extension. Is there a share of the freehold?