I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Kingston Vale. Before I get started I want to be sure as to the unexpired term of the lease.

If the lease is registered - and most are in Kingston Vale - then the leasehold title will always include the short particulars 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.

My fiance and I may need to rent out our Kingston Vale 1st floor flat temporarily due to a new job. We used a Kingston Vale conveyancing firm in 2003 but they have closed and we did not think at the time seek any guidance as to whether the lease prohibits the subletting of the flat. How do we find out?

Notwithstanding that your previous Kingston Vale conveyancing solicitor is no longer available you can check your lease to check if it allows you to sublet the premises. The rule is that if the lease is silent, subletting is permitted. There may be a precondition that you must obtain permission via your landlord or some other party before subletting. This means that you cannot sublet in the absence of prior permission. Such consent is not allowed to be unreasonably turned down. If the lease does not allow you to sublet you will need to ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

What are your top tips when it comes to finding a Kingston Vale conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?

When appointing a conveyancer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Kingston Vale conveyancing practice) it is imperative that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We suggested that you make enquires with two or three firms including non Kingston Vale conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions could be helpful:

• How experienced is the firm with lease extension legislation?
• How many lease extensions have they conducted in Kingston Vale in the last twenty four months?

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Kingston Vale with the purpose of speeding up the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Kingston Vale can be avoided if you get in touch lawyers the minute your agents start advertising the property and ask them to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers representatives.
• Some Kingston Vale leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, it would be prudent to place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is financially capable of paying the yearly service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their lawyers.
• If you have had conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved prior to the flat being marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be warry about purchasing a property where there is an ongoing dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to pay any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal details of the dispute to the buyers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as over rather than unsettled.
• If you have the benefit of shareholding in the freehold, you should make sure that you have the original share document. Organising a new share certificate is often a lengthy process and delays many a Kingston Vale home move. Where a reissued share certificate is necessary, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (if applicable) for this sooner rather than later.
• You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but you should verify this via your lawyers. A purchaser's lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to to exchange contracts if the remaining number of years is less than 80 years. It is therefore important at an as soon as possible that you consider whether the lease for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

If all goes to plan we aim to complete the disposal of our £ 425000 garden flat in Kingston Vale in just under a week. The freeholder has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and previous years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge an administration fee for a flat conveyance in Kingston Vale?

Kingston Vale conveyancing on leasehold flats often necessitates the purchaser’s conveyancer submitting enquiries for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to address such questions the majority will be willing to do so. They are at liberty invoice a reasonable charge for responding to enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average fee for the information that you are referring to is £350, in some cases it is in excess of £800. The management information fee levied by the landlord must be accompanied by a synopsis of entitlements and obligations in relation to administration fees, otherwise the charge is not strictly payable. Reality however dictates that one has no option but to pay whatever is demanded should you wish to exchange contracts with the buyer.

Having spent months of negotiations we simply can't agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Kingston Vale. Can we issue an application to the Residential Property Tribunal Service?

Most certainly. We are happy to put you in touch with a Kingston Vale conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement case for a Kingston Vale premises is 19 St. Margarets Crescent in August 2010. the tribunal was of the view that the premium to be paid by the leaseholder for the freehold reversion was £51,983.00 This case was in relation to 3 flats. The remaining number of years on the lease was 66.25 years.

I am the registered owner of a studio flat in Kingston Vale, conveyancing was carried out 2005. Can you let me have an estimate of the premium that my landlord can legally expect in return for granting a renewal of my lease? Comparable flats in Kingston Vale with an extended lease are worth £225,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £65 charged once a year. The lease ceases on 21st October 2098

With 72 years remaining on your lease we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £11,400 and £13,200 as well as legals.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to advice on the actual costs without more detailed due diligence. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional concerns that need to be taken into account and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action placing reliance on this information before getting professional advice.