Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Kenton. Before I get started I want to be sure as to the remaining lease term.

Assuming the lease is registered - and almost all are in Kenton - 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.

Helen (my wife) and I may need to rent out our Kenton basement flat temporarily due to a career opportunity. We used a Kenton conveyancing practice in 2002 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?

The lease governs relations between the landlord and you the flat owner; specifically, it will set out if subletting is not allowed, 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 Kenton do not prevent an absolute prevention of subletting – such a provision would undoubtedly devalue the property. In most cases there is simply a requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly supplying a duplicate of the sublease.

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a couple of maisonettes in Kenton which have in the region of fifty years remaining on the leases. Will this present a problem?

There are no two ways about it. A leasehold flat in Kenton is a wasting asset as a result of the shortening lease. The nearer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it reduces the value of the premises. The majority of purchasers and lenders, leases with less than 75 years become less and less attractive. On a more upbeat note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the premises 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 Kenton 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.

If all goes to plan we aim to complete the sale of our £ 175000 maisonette in Kenton next Wednesday . The landlords agents has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and previous years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in Kenton?

Kenton conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes more often than not requires the buyer’s solicitor sending questions for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to answer these enquiries the majority will be content to assist. They are entitled invoice a reasonable charge for responding to questions or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average fee for the information that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some situations it exceeds £800. The management information fee demanded by the landlord must be accompanied by a synopsis of rights and obligations in relation to administration charges, without which the charge is not strictly payable. Reality however dictates that one has no choice but to pay whatever is requested of you should you wish to exchange contracts with the buyer.

I have tried to negotiate informally with with my landlord for a lease extension without getting anywhere. Can I make an application to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal? Can you recommend a Kenton conveyancing firm to represent me?

Most definitely. We are happy to put you in touch with a Kenton conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement matter before the tribunal for a Kenton flat is 139/139A Masons Avenue in February 2010. this was a case with an absentee freeholder. As a result the leaseholders applied to Willesden County Court for an order dispensing with the giving of a notice of claim.14th October 2009 District Judge Brar granted a vesting order and the court directed that the matter should be transferred to this tribunal to determine the freehold premium. The tribunal concluded on a fi
gure of £13,000 for the freehold interest This case was in relation to 1 flat. The the number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 74 years.

In relation to leasehold conveyancing in Kenton what are the most common lease defects?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Kenton. All leases is drafted differently and drafting errors can sometimes mean that certain sections are not included. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the building
• Insurance obligations
• 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

You may have a problem when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Lloyds TSB Bank, Bank of Scotland, and Clydesdale all have express conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is defective they may refuse to provide security, obliging the purchaser to withdraw.

Kenton Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Queries Prior to buying

What prohibitions are there in the Kenton Lease?