My fiance and I may need to rent out our Old Oak Common basement flat temporarily due to taking a sabbatical. We used a Old Oak Common conveyancing firm in 2003 but they have since shut and we did not have the foresight to seek any advice as to whether the lease permits subletting. How do we find out?

The lease governs the relationship between the landlord and you the leaseholder; specifically, it will indicate if subletting is prohibited, or permitted but only subject to certain caveats. The rule is that if the lease contains no specific ban or restriction, subletting is allowed. The majority of leases in Old Oak Common do not prevent subletting altogether – such a provision would adversely affect the market value the flat. In most cases there is a basic requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly sending a copy of the tenancy agreement.

I am looking at a two flats in Old Oak Common which have approximately 50 years remaining on the lease term. should I be concerned?

A lease is a right to use the premises for a prescribed time frame. As the lease shortens the saleability of the lease reduces and it becomes more expensive to acquire a lease extension. This is why it is generally wise to increase the term of the lease. More often than not it is difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease as mortgage companies may be unwilling to lend money on such properties. Lease extension can be a protracted process. We advise that you seek professional assistance from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this arena

What advice can you give us when it comes to finding a Old Oak Common conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a solicitor for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Old Oak Common conveyancing practice) it is imperative that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We advise that you speak with two or three firms including non Old Oak Common conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions could be useful:

• How many lease extensions have they conducted in Old Oak Common in the last year?
• Can they put you in touch with client in Old Oak Common who can give a testimonial?

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Old Oak Common with the aim of expediting the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Old Oak Common can be bypassed where you appoint lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to collate the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers lawyers.
• If you have carried out any alterations to the residence would they have required Landlord’s consent? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Old Oak Common leases often stipulate that internal structural changes or installing wooden flooring require a licence issued by the Landlord approving such alterations. Where you dont have the consents to hand you should not communicate with the landlord without contacting your lawyer in the first instance.
• If you have had conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are settled prior to the flat being marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where there is a current dispute. You may have to bite the bullet and discharge any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose details of the dispute to the buyers, but it is clearly preferable to present the dispute as over as opposed to unresolved.
• If you are supposed to have a share in the Management Company, you should ensure that you are holding the original share document. Arranging a replacement share certificate is often a time consuming process and slows down many a Old Oak Common conveyancing transaction. If a new share certificate is needed, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (if applicable) for this as soon as possible.
• You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but you should verify this via your conveyancers. A purchaser's conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the remaining number of years is less than 75 years. In the circumstances it is important at an as soon as possible that you identify whether the lease term requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on the sale of our £ 400000 flat in Old Oak Common on Friday in a week. The landlords agents has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and 3 years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge such fees for a leasehold conveyance in Old Oak Common?

Old Oak Common conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes normally requires the buyer’s lawyer sending questions for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is not legally bound to respond to such questions the majority will be content to assist. They are at liberty charge a reasonable administration fee for answering questions or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average costs for the information that you are referring to is £350, in some cases it exceeds £800. The administration charge demanded by the landlord must be sent together with a synopsis of rights and obligations in relation to administration charges, without which the charge is technically not due. Reality however dictates that one has little option but to pay whatever is demanded should you wish to sell the property.

I am the proprietor of a first flat in Old Oak Common. Given that I can not reach agreement with the freeholder, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal make a decision on the amount due for the purchase of the freehold?

Most certainly. We are happy to put you in touch with a Old Oak Common conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement case for a Old Oak Common premises is 49 Long Drive in March 2014. The tribunal concluded that the price payable for the freehold interest in the Property should be £26,491 divided as to £12,546 in respect of the ground floor flat and £13,945 in respect of the
first floor flat This case affected 2 flats. The the number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 68.47 years.

I own a 1st floor flat in Old Oak Common, conveyancing was carried out in 2008. Can you shed any light on how much the price could be for a 90 year extension to my lease? Comparable properties in Old Oak Common with a long lease are worth £260,000. The ground rent is £50 levied per year. The lease finishes on 21st October 2105

You have 79 years left to run the likely cost is going to span between £12,400 and £14,200 plus professional fees.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to advice on the actual costs without more comprehensive investigations. You should not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt additional concerns that need to be considered and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward placing reliance on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.