I would like to let out my leasehold flat in Marylebone. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask him. Do I need to ask my freeholder for their consent?

Even though your previous Marylebone conveyancing lawyer is no longer around you can check your lease to see if it allows you to sublet the apartment. The accepted inference is that if the deeds are silent, subletting is allowed. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you must obtain consent via your landlord or some other party in advance of subletting. The net result is you not allowed to sublet in the absence of prior consent. Such consent should not be unreasonably turned down. If your lease does not allow you to sublet you will need to ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only 68 years unexpired on my flat in Marylebone. I now wish to extend my lease but my landlord is absent. What should I do?

If you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be lengthened by the Court. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you have done all that could be expected to locate the landlord. On the whole a specialist would be helpful to conduct investigations and to produce an expert document which can be accepted by the court as evidence that the landlord is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a conveyancer in relation to proving the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Marylebone.

I’m about to sell my 2 bed apartment in Marylebone.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just received a yearly service charge demand – what should I do?

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 attracted to a two flats in Marylebone both have approximately 50 years unexpired on the leases. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

There are no two ways about it. A leasehold flat in Marylebone is a deteriorating asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The closer the lease gets to its expiry date, the more it reduces the marketability of the premises. The majority of buyers 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 Marylebone conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. More often than not it is possible to negotiate informally with the freeholder to extend the lease You may find he or she is happy to negotiate informally and willing to consider your offer straight off, without having to involve anyone else. This will save you time and money and it could help you reach a lower price on the lease. You need to ensure that the agreed 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.

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Marylebone with the purpose of speeding up the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Marylebone can be avoided if you instruct lawyers as soon as you market your property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers representatives.
• The majority freeholders or managing agents in Marylebone charge for providing management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack sought on or before finding a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most common reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Marylebone.

I am the proprietor of a a ground floor purpose built flat in Marylebone. Given that I can not reach agreement with the freeholder, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal determine the premium due for a lease extension?

Where there is a absentee landlord or if there is dispute about what the lease extension should cost, under the relevant statutes you can apply to the LVT to determine the sum to be paid.

An example of a Lease Extension case for a Marylebone premises is Flats 37 & 39 88/90 Portland Place in December 2010. The Tribunal determined that the premium payable for the lease extensions in respect of these two flats is as follows:- For Flat 37, the sum of £385,230.00 For Flat 39, the sum of £436,780.00 This case related to 2 flats. The the unexpired residue of the current lease was 24.02 years.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Marylebone