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

A lease governs relations between the freeholder and you the leaseholder; specifically, it will indicate if subletting is prohibited, or permitted but only subject to certain caveats. The accepted inference is that if the lease contains no specific ban or restriction, subletting is allowed. Most leases in Merton Park do not prevent strict prohibition on subletting – such a provision would undoubtedly devalue the flat. In most cases there is a basic requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly supplying a duplicate of the sublease.

I own a leasehold flat in Merton Park. Conveyancing and Barnsley Building Society mortgage are in place. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the freehold. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1991. The conveyancing practitioner in Merton Park who previously acted has now retired.Any advice?

First make enquiries of the Land Registry to make sure that this person is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Merton Park conveyancing practitioner to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for a few pound. Rest assured that regardless, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

I've recently bought a leasehold property in Merton Park. 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 owner and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. Strange as it may seem, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element 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).

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Merton Park from the point of view of speeding up the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Merton Park can be reduced where you get in touch lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold documentation needed by the purchasers’ conveyancers.
• Many freeholders or Management Companies in Merton Park charge for providing management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should discover the fee that they propose to charge. The management information can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus reducing delays. The average time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most common cause of frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Merton Park.
• If you have carried out any alterations to the residence would they have required Landlord’s approval? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Merton Park state that internal structural alterations or laying down wooden flooring calls for a licence from the Landlord approving such changes. If you fail to have the paperwork to hand do not contact the landlord without checking with your conveyancer in the first instance.
• A minority of Merton Park 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 will need to confirm that the buyers are able to meet the annual 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 solicitors.
• If you are supposed to have a share in the Management Company, you should ensure that you are holding the original share document. Obtaining a re-issued share certificate is often a time consuming formality and frustrates many a Merton Park conveyancing transaction. Where a duplicate share is necessary, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (if applicable) for this sooner rather than later.

All being well we will complete the sale of our £ 175000 flat in Merton Park in six days. The landlords agents has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and previous years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in Merton Park?

For the majority of leasehold sales in Merton Park conveyancing will involve, queries regarding the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :

• Completing pre-exchange questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Merton Park
• Copies of the building insurance and schedule
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your lawyer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Merton Park leasehold premises is £350. For Merton Park conveyancing transactions it is customary for the seller to pay for these costs. The landlord or their agents are under no legal obligation to answer such questions most will be willing to do so - albeit often at exorbitant prices where the fees bear little relation to the work involved. Unfortunately there is no law that requires fixed charges for administrative tasks. Neither is there any legal time frame by which they are required to provide answers.

I have attempted and failed to negotiate with my landlord for a lease extension without success. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal adjudicate on such matters? Can you recommend a Merton Park conveyancing firm to represent me?

if there is a absentee landlord or if there is disagreement about the premium for a lease extension, under the relevant statutes it is possible to make an application to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) to determine the premium.

An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a Merton Park flat is 14 Nutwell Street in January 2014. The premium payable for the acquisition of a new lease of the subject premises was in the sum of £30,523 This case affected 1 flat. The the unexpired term as at the valuation date was 62.94 years.

Merton Park Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Queries before buying

It is important to be aware whether redecorating or some other significant cost is anticipated that will be shared by the leasehold owners and could well dramatically impact the level of the maintenance fees or result in a specific payment. Generally speaking the outlay for major works are not included within service charges, although some managing agents in Merton Park require leaseholders to pay into a reserve fund created for the specific purpose of establishing a fund for major works.