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Top Five Questions relating to Ickenham leasehold conveyancing

My fiance and I may need to sub-let our Ickenham garden flat for a while due to taking a sabbatical. We used a Ickenham conveyancing firm in 2002 but they have since shut and we did not have the foresight to get any guidance as to whether the lease permits subletting. How do we find out?

Notwithstanding that your last Ickenham conveyancing lawyer is no longer around you can check your lease to see if it allows you to sublet the premises. The accepted inference is that if the lease is non-specific, subletting is allowed. There may be a precondition that you must seek permission via your landlord or some other party before subletting. This means that you cannot sublet in the absence of prior consent. The consent should not be unreasonably refused ore delayed. If the lease does not allow you to sublet you will need to ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

Due to sign contracts shortly on a studio apartment in Ickenham. Conveyancing lawyers have said that they report fully next week. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Ickenham should include some of the following:

  • The unexpired lease term You should be advised as what happens when the lease expires, and informed of the importance of the 80 year mark
  • The total extent of the premises. This will be the apartment itself but could also include a roof space or basement if appropriate.
  • Does the lease require carpeting throughout thus preventing wood flooring?
  • Whether the lease restricts you from letting out the flat, or working from home
  • Whether your lease has a provision for a sinking fund?
  • I don't know whether the lease allows me to alter or improve anything in the flat - you should know whether it applies to all alterations or just structural alteration, and whether consent is required
  • Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your property and do you know what it means in practice? For a comprehensive list of information to be included in your report on your leasehold property in Ickenham please enquire of your lawyer in advance of your conveyancing in Ickenham

    • My wife and I purchased a leasehold flat in Ickenham. Conveyancing and Nationwide Building Society mortgage organised. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the freehold. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1992. The conveyancing solicitor in Ickenham who previously acted has now retired.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 registered owner of the freehold reversion. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Ickenham conveyancing lawyer to do this as it can be done on-line for £3. Rest assured that regardless, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

    I am looking at a couple of apartments in Ickenham both have approximately fifty years left on the lease term. Will this present a problem?

    A lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the property for a prescribed time frame. As the lease shortens the value of the lease deteriorate and results in it becoming more costly to acquire a lease extension. This is why it is advisable to increase the term of the lease. Sometimes it is difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease because mortgage companies may be reluctant to lend money on such properties. Lease enfranchisement can be a difficult process. We recommend you seek professional help from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this arena

    Last month I purchased a leasehold flat in Ickenham. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before 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. However, 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).

    Having spent years of correspondence we simply can't agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Ickenham. Does the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal have jurisdiction to calculate the appropriate figures?

    if there is a absentee landlord or where there is disagreement about what the lease extension should cost, under the relevant legislation it is possible to make an application to the LVT to arrive at the sum to be paid.

    An example of a Lease Extension case for a Ickenham flat is Flat 72 Queens Walk in January 2013. The Tribunals calculated the premium payable to be £22,090. This case affected 1 flat. The unexpired term was 53.26 years.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Ickenham