Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Hampton Hill. Before I set the wheels in motion I require certainty as to the number of years remaining on the lease.

If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and most are in Hampton Hill - 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.

Jane (my partner) and I may need to sub-let our Hampton Hill garden flat temporarily due to taking a sabbatical. We instructed a Hampton Hill conveyancing practice in 2004 but they have since shut and we did not think at the time get any advice as to whether the lease permits subletting. How do we find out?

Even though your previous Hampton Hill conveyancing lawyer is no longer available you can review your lease to check if it allows you to sublet the property. The rule is that if the lease is silent, subletting is permitted. There may be a precondition that you need to seek permission via your landlord or some other party before subletting. This means you not allowed to sublet in the absence of prior consent. The consent must not not be unreasonably turned down. If the lease does not allow you to sublet you will need to ask your landlord for their consent.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold flat in Hampton Hill. Conveyancing and Virgin Money mortgage organised. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1995. The conveyancing practitioner in Hampton Hill who acted for me is not around.Any advice?

The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to be sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. There is no need to incur the fees of a Hampton Hill conveyancing firm to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. You should note that in any event, even if this is the rightful 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 two apartments in Hampton Hill both have about fifty years remaining on the leases. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

There is no doubt about it. A leasehold flat in Hampton Hill is a deteriorating asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The nearer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it reduces the salability of the property. The majority of purchasers and mortgage companies, leases with less than eighty years become less and less marketable. On a more positive note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the property for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of premises with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Hampton Hill conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. A more straightforward and quicker method of extending would be to contact your landlord directly and sound him out on the prospect of extending the lease They may agree to a smaller lump sum and an increase in the ground rent, but to shorter extension terms in return. You need to ensure that any new terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.

I have attempted and failed to negotiate with my landlord for a lease extension without getting anywhere. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal decide on such issues? Can you recommend a Hampton Hill conveyancing firm to help?

in cases where there is a absentee freeholder or if there is disagreement about what the lease extension should cost, under the relevant statutes it is possible to make an application to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal to determine the premium.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Hampton Hill premises is Ground Floor Flat 91 Bath Road in May 2009. in a case where the freeholder could not be traced, the Brentford County Court ordered that the Lease be surrendered in return for the grant of a new lease of the Premises at a premium determined by the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal. The tribunal concluded that the price payable by the Applicant for the new lease of the premises be £15,900 This case was in relation to 1 flat. The the number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 60.45 years.

Are there frequently found defects that you encounter in leases for Hampton Hill properties?

Leasehold conveyancing in Hampton Hill is not unique. All leases is drafted differently and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain provisions are not included. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• A provision to repair to or maintain parts of the property
• A duty to insure the building
• A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
• Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

A defective lease will likely cause issues when trying to sell a property primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Santander, Coventry Building Society, and Clydesdale all have very detailed conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to provide security, obliging the purchaser to withdraw.

Hampton Hill Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Questions you should consider Prior to Purchasing

The best form of lease structure is if the freehold reversion is in the ownership of the leaseholders. In this arrangement the tenants enjoy being in charge if their destiny and although a managing agent is often retained if it is bigger than a house conversion, the managing agent acts for the leaseholders themselves.