Harry (my fiance) and I may need to let out our Pentonville 1st floor flat for a while due to a career opportunity. We instructed a Pentonville conveyancing firm in 2001 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?

A small minority of properties in Pentonville do contain a provision to say that subletting is only permitted with prior consent from the landlord. The landlord cannot unreasonably refuse but, in such cases, they would need to see references. Experience dictates that problems are usually caused by unsatisfactory tenants rather than owner-occupiers and for that reason you can expect the freeholder to take up the references and consider them carefully before granting consent.

I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that appears to tick a lot of boxes, at a reasonable figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have just found out that the title is leasehold as opposed to freehold. I am assuming that there are issues buying a house with a leasehold title in Pentonville. Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Pentonville are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor used to dealing with such properties who can assist with the conveyancing process. it is apparent that you are buying in Pentonville so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Pentonville conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they have experience in dealing with leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the number of years remaining. Being a leaseholder you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want to the property. The lease will likely included provisions such as requiring the landlord’sconsent to carry out alterations. You may also be required to pay a maintenance charge towards the upkeep of the communal areas where the house is part of an estate. Your solicitor should advise you fully on all the issues.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold house in Pentonville. Conveyancing and Barclays Direct mortgage are in place. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1992. The conveyancing practitioner in Pentonville who previously acted has now retired.What should I do?

First make enquiries of HMLR to make sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. There is no need to incur the fees of a Pentonville conveyancing firm to do this as it can be done on-line for less than a fiver. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

I am employed by a long established estate agent office in Pentonville where we have witnessed a number of flat sales jeopardised as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given conflicting advice from local Pentonville conveyancing firms. Please can you confirm whether the seller of a flat can instigate the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

As long as the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser need not have to wait 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed before, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

Alternatively, it may be possible to agree the lease extension with the freeholder either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the purchaser.

We expect to complete the disposal of our £ 250000 apartment in Pentonville in 10 days. The landlords agents has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and previous years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Pentonville?

Pentonville conveyancing on leasehold flats usually requires the purchaser’s solicitor sending questions for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is not legally bound to address these enquiries most will be willing to assist. They are at liberty invoice a reasonable charge for responding to enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average fee for the information that you are referring to is £350, in some situations it exceeds £800. The administration charge demanded by the landlord must be sent together with a summary of entitlements and obligations in respect of administration charges, without which the charge is not strictly payable. In reality one has no choice but to pay whatever is demanded if you want to complete the sale of your home.

I inherited a two-bedroom flat in Pentonville. Given that I can not reach agreement with the freeholder, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal determine the sum due for the purchase of the freehold?

Most certainly. We can put you in touch with a Pentonville conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension case for a Pentonville flat is Flat 89 Trinity Court Grays Inn Road in February 2013. the Tribunal found that the premium to be paid by the tenant on the grant of a new lease, in accordance with section 56 and Schedule 13 to the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 should be £36,229. This case was in relation to 1 flat. The unexpired term was 66.8 years.

I inherited a garden flat in Pentonville, conveyancing formalities finalised half a dozen years ago. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Comparable flats in Pentonville with over 90 years remaining are worth £236,000. The ground rent is £50 yearly. The lease ceases on 21st October 2096

With 70 years left to run we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £9,500 and £11,000 as well as professional fees.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs without more comprehensive investigations. Do not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt additional issues that need to be considered and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward based on this information before getting professional advice.