Hampstead leasehold conveyancing Example Support Desk Enquiries
Helen (my wife) and I may need to rent out our Hampstead basement flat for a while due to a new job. We instructed a Hampstead conveyancing practice in 2002 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?
The lease dictates relations between the landlord and you the flat owner; in particular, it will say if subletting is not allowed, or permitted but only subject to certain conditions. The accepted inference is that if the lease contains no expres ban or restriction, subletting is allowed. Most leases in Hampstead do not prevent an absolute prevention of subletting – such a clause would undoubtedly devalue the property. In most cases there is simply a requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly supplying a copy of the sublease.
My wife and I purchased a leasehold house in Hampstead. Conveyancing and Nottingham Building Society mortgage organised. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1997. The conveyancing solicitor in Hampstead who previously acted has now retired.Any advice?
The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to make sure that this person is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. There is no need to incur the fees of a Hampstead conveyancing firm to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for a few pound. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.
I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a couple of apartments in Hampstead both have about forty five years left on the lease term. Will this present a problem?
There are plenty of short leases in Hampstead. The lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the property for a period of time. As a lease gets shorter the saleability of the lease decreases and it becomes more costly to extend the lease. This is why it is generally wise to increase the term of the lease. Sometimes it is difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease because mortgage lenders may be unwilling to lend money on properties of this type. Lease enfranchisement can be a protracted process. We recommend you seek professional help from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this arena
I've recently bought a leasehold flat in Hampstead. 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. 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).
We expect to complete the sale of our £275000 apartment in Hampstead next week. The management company has quoted £396 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and previous years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in Hampstead?
Hampstead conveyancing on leasehold flats usually involves the purchaser’s solicitor submitting enquiries for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to address these enquiries most will be content to assist. They are entitled levy a reasonable administration fee for answering questions or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average fee for the information that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some situations it is above £800. The administration charge levied by the landlord must be sent together with a synopsis of rights and obligations in respect of administration charges, without which the charge is not strictly payable. In reality you have little choice but to pay whatever is demanded should you wish to sell the property.
Following months of dialogue we are unable to agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Hampstead. Does the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal have jurisdiction to calculate the appropriate figures?
Absolutely. We are happy to put you in touch with a Hampstead conveyancing firm who can help.
An example of a Lease Extension case for a Hampstead premises is Raised Ground Floor Flat 20 Fitzjohns Avenue in July 2014. the Tribunal decided that the premiums to be paid for new leases in respect of the Raised Ground Floor Flat and the First Floor Flat were to be calculated as: Raised Ground Floor: £765,175.14 First Floor: £601,617.77 This case affected 2 flats. The the number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 16.83 and 16.43.
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