Jane (my partner) and I may need to sub-let our Mill Hill basement flat temporarily due to taking a sabbatical. We used a Mill Hill conveyancing practice in 2004 but they have since shut and we did not have the foresight to get any advice as to whether the lease permits subletting. How do we find out?

Notwithstanding that your last Mill Hill conveyancing solicitor is not available you can check your lease to see if you are permitted to let out the property. The accepted inference is that if the lease is non-specific, subletting is permitted. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you need to seek permission from your landlord or other appropriate person in advance of subletting. The net result is you not allowed to sublet without prior consent. The consent should not be unreasonably refused ore delayed. If your lease does not allow you to sublet you should ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

There are only Seventy years left on my flat in Mill Hill. I now wish to extend my lease but my landlord is absent. What options are available to me?

If you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be granted an extra 90 years by the magistrate. However, you will be required to prove that you have used your best endeavours to track down the freeholder. In some cases an enquiry agent should be useful to carry out a search and to produce an expert document which can be used as proof that the landlord is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer both on devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Mill Hill.

Looking forward to exchange soon on a ground floor flat in Mill Hill. Conveyancing solicitors inform me that they will have a report out to me next week. What should I be looking out for?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Mill Hill should include some of the following:

• Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, freeholder

I've found a house that seems to tick a lot of boxes, at a great price which is making it more attractive. I have subsequently been informed that it's a leasehold as opposed to freehold. I am assuming that there are particular concerns buying a house with a leasehold title in Mill Hill. Conveyancing advisers have are soon to be instructed. Will my lawyers set out the risks of buying a leasehold house in Mill Hill ?

The majority of houses in Mill Hill are freehold rather than leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer used to dealing with such properties who can help the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are purchasing in Mill Hill in which case you should be looking for a Mill Hill conveyancing solicitor and check that they are used to dealing with leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. Being a lessee you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want to the property. The lease will likely included provisions for example obtaining the freeholder’spermission to carry out alterations. It may be necessary to pay a service charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the property is located on an estate. Your solicitor will advise you fully on all the issues.

Having spent months of dialogue we are unable to agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Mill Hill. Does the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal have jurisdiction to calculate the appropriate figures?

Absolutely. We can put you in touch with a Mill Hill conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension case for a Mill Hill property is Ground Floor Maisonette 17 Milton Road in January 2014. The Tribunal determined the premium payable by the Applicant to the should be £13,299 This case affected 1 flat. The unexpired term was 71.73 years.

Are there common problems that you come across in leases for Mill Hill properties?

Leasehold conveyancing in Mill Hill is not unique. All leases is drafted differently and legal mistakes in the legal wording can result in certain sections are erroneous. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain elements of the property
• A duty to insure the building
• A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

A defective lease will likely cause problems when trying to sell a property as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Yorkshire Building Society, Barnsley Building Society, and Barclays Direct all have very detailed requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to provide security, forcing the buyer to withdraw.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Mill Hill