Harry (my fiance) and I may need to sub-let our Kensal Green garden flat temporarily due to a new job. We instructed a Kensal Green conveyancing firm in 2003 but they have closed and we did not have the foresight to seek any advice as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?

Notwithstanding that your last Kensal Green conveyancing lawyer is not available you can review your lease to check if you are permitted to let out the apartment. The accepted inference is that if the lease is silent, subletting is allowed. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you are obliged to obtain consent via your landlord or other appropriate person in advance of subletting. This means you not allowed to sublet without first obtaining consent. Such consent should not be unreasonably withheld. If your lease does not allow you to sublet you should ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

I have just appointed agents to market my ground floor flat in Kensal Green.Conveyancing has not commenced but I have just received a yearly service charge invoice – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

It best that you discharge the invoice as normal because all ground rent and service charges will be apportioned on completion, so you will be reimbursed by the buyer for the period running from after the completion date to the next payment date. Most managing agents will not acknowledge the buyer until the service charges have been paid and are up to date so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

I am looking at a couple of flats in Kensal Green which have about fifty years left on the leases. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

There are plenty of short leases in Kensal Green. The lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the property for a prescribed time frame. As a lease gets shorter the marketability of the lease decreases and results in it becoming more costly to acquire a lease extension. For this reason it is generally wise to extend the lease term. More often than not it is difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease because mortgage companies less inclined to grant a loan on such properties. Lease extension can be a difficult process. We advise that you get professional help from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this area

I work for a reputable estate agency in Kensal Green where we see a number of flat sales jeopardised as a result of short leases. I have received inconsistent advice from local Kensal Green conveyancing firms. Can you confirm whether the owner of a flat can start the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

As long as the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser need not have to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done prior to, or simultaneously with completion of the sale.

Alternatively, it may be possible to agree the lease extension with the freeholder 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 buyer.

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Kensal Green from the perspective of expediting the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Kensal Green can be avoided if you instruct lawyers the minute you market your property and request that they start to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the purchasers’ lawyers.
• Many landlords or Management Companies in Kensal Green charge for supplying management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should discover the actual amount of the charges. The management information sought on or before finding a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The typical amount of time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most frequent cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in Kensal Green.
• If you have carried out any alterations to the property would they have required Landlord’s permission? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Kensal Green state that internal structural changes or laying down wooden flooring require a licence issued by the Landlord acquiescing to such alterations. If you fail to have the paperwork in place you should not communicate with the landlord without contacting your conveyancer in advance.
• If you have the benefit of shareholding in the freehold, you should make sure that you are holding the original share document. Organising a replacement share certificate can be a lengthy process and delays many a Kensal Green home move. If a duplicate share certificate is needed, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (if relevant) for this at the earliest opportunity.
• You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be advisable double-check by asking your conveyancers. A buyer’s lawyer will not be happy to advise their client to to exchange contracts if the lease term is less than 75 years. In the circumstances it is important at an early stage that you identify whether the lease requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

I have tried to negotiate informally with with my landlord to extend my lease without success. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal decide on such issues? Can you recommend a Kensal Green conveyancing firm to assist?

Absolutely. We are happy to put you in touch with a Kensal Green conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a Kensal Green residence is 85A Chevening Road in August 2013. the Tribunals conclusions resulted in a payment of a premium for the new lease in the sum of £11,211 This case related to 1 flat. The the unexpired term as at the valuation date was 84.34 years.

I acquired a ground floor flat in Kensal Green, conveyancing was carried out in 2007. How much will my lease extension cost? Corresponding flats in Kensal Green with a long lease are worth £220,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £60 levied per year. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2081

You have 55 years unexpired we estimate the premium for your lease extension to be between £31,400 and £36,200 plus professional fees.

The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure in the absence of comprehensive investigations. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt other concerns that need to be taken into account and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not take any other action based on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.