Jane (my partner) and I may need to rent out our Mottingham basement flat temporarily due to taking a sabbatical. We used a Mottingham conveyancing firm in 2002 but they have since shut and we did not think at the time seek any advice as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?

Your lease dictates relations between the freeholder and you the leaseholder; in particular, it will indicate if subletting is banned, or permitted but only subject to certain conditions. The accepted inference is that if the lease contains no expres ban or restriction, subletting is permitted. The majority of leases in Mottingham do not contain an absolute prevention of subletting – such a clause would adversely affect the market value the property. Instead, there is usually simply a requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly sending a copy of the sublease.

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a two flats in Mottingham both have about 50 years unexpired on the leases. Will this present a problem?

There is no doubt about it. A leasehold apartment in Mottingham is a deteriorating asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The closer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it reduces the marketability of the premises. The majority of buyers and lenders, leases with under 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 property 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 Mottingham 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 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.

What advice can you give us when it comes to finding a Mottingham conveyancing firm to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

If you are instructing a property lawyer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Mottingham conveyancing practice) it is most important that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We recommend that you speak with several firms including non Mottingham conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions could be useful:

• How familiar is the firm with lease extension legislation?

What are the costs for lease extension conveyancing?

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Mottingham with the intention of expediting the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Mottingham can be reduced where you instruct lawyers the minute you market your property and request that they start to collate the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers solicitors.
• The majority landlords or managing agents in Mottingham levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the actual amount of the charges. The management information can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus reducing delays. The typical amount of time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most common reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Mottingham.

Some Mottingham leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, you should 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 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 actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their solicitors.

If you have had conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is essential that these are settled prior to the flat being marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be concerned about purchasing a property where there is an ongoing dispute. You may need to swallow your pride and discharge any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to 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 better to present the dispute as historic as opposed to ongoing.

If you have the benefit of shareholding in the Management Company, you should ensure that you have the original share document. Organising a replacement share certificate is often a time consuming formality and frustrates many a Mottingham home move. If a duplicate share certificate is necessary, do contact the company officers or managing agents (if applicable) for this sooner rather than later.

All being well we will complete our sale of a £325000 apartment in Mottingham in 8 days. The landlords agents has quoted £372 for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and 3 years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in Mottingham?

Mottingham conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes normally involves fees being invoiced by managing agents :

• Addressing conveyancing due diligence questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Mottingham
• 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 solicitor will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Mottingham leasehold premises is £350. For Mottingham 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 obliged to provide the information.

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

if there is a absentee freeholder or if there is disagreement about what the lease extension should cost, under the relevant statutes you can apply to the LVT to decide the sum to be paid.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Mottingham property is 49 Woodstock Court Burnt Ash Hill in May 2012. the payment of £64,116 by the leaseholder was the premium which the Tribunal found due for the lease extension in this case. This case related to 1 flat. The the unexpired term as at the valuation date was 23.26 years.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Mottingham