My wife and I may need to sub-let our Rayners Lane 1st floor flat for a while due to taking a sabbatical. We used a Rayners Lane conveyancing practice in 2001 but they have closed and we did not think at the time get any guidance as to whether the lease prohibits the subletting of the flat. How do we find out?

Even though your previous Rayners Lane conveyancing solicitor is no longer available you can review your lease to check if you are permitted to let out the property. The rule is that if the deeds are silent, subletting is allowed. There may be a precondition that you need to seek consent via your landlord or other appropriate person prior to subletting. The net result is you not allowed to sublet without first obtaining permission. The consent should not be unreasonably turned down. If the lease prohibits you from letting out the property you will need to ask your landlord for their consent.

You should [be sent a copy of the lease|receive a copy of the lease]

Looking forward to complete next month on a studio apartment in Rayners Lane. Conveyancing lawyers assured me that they are sending me a report tomorrow. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

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

• The length of the lease term You should be advised as what happens when the lease ends, and aware of the importance of the 80 year mark
• The total extent of the property. This will be the property itself but may incorporate a roof space or basement if appropriate.
• Do you need to have carpet in the flat or are you allowed wood flooring?
• You must be told what counts as a Nuisance in the lease
• The landlord’s rights to access the flat you be made aware that your landlord has rights of access and I know how much notice s/he must provide.
• Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your premises and do you know what it means in practice?
• The landlord’s obligations to repair and maintain the building. It is important that you know who is responsible for the repair and maintenance of every part of the building

For a comprehensive list of information to be included in your report on your leasehold property in Rayners Lane please enquire of your lawyer in advance of your conveyancing in Rayners Lane

I have just appointed agents to market my garden apartment in Rayners Lane.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just had a quarterly maintenance charge invoice – what should I do?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should pay the service charge as normal because all ground rent and service charges will be apportioned on completion, so you will be reimbursed by the buyer for the period running from after the completion date to the next payment date. Most management companies will not acknowledge the buyer unless the service charges have been paid and are up to date so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

I've recently bought a leasehold house in Rayners Lane. Do I have any liability for service charges relating to a period prior to my ownership?

Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. However, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. It is an essential part 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).

All being well we will complete the sale of our £ 300000 flat in Rayners Lane in 8 days. The landlords agents has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and 3 years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in Rayners Lane?

Rayners Lane conveyancing on leasehold apartments normally necessitates administration charges invoiced by freeholders :

• Answering pre-contract enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in Rayners Lane
• 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 Rayners Lane leasehold property is £350. For Rayners Lane 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 the information.

I have attempted and failed to negotiate with my landlord to extend my lease without success. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal adjudicate on such matters? Can you recommend a Rayners Lane conveyancing firm to assist?

in cases where there is a missing freeholder or where there is dispute about what the lease extension should cost, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 it is possible to make an application to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal to make a decision on the price.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Rayners Lane flat is GFF 1 Holyrood Avenue in May 2014. The Tenant wished to acquire a new (extended) lease and applied to the Willesden County Court who granted a vesting order on 20* March2013. The Tribunal decied that the premium to be paid was £9,062 This case related to 1 flat. The the unexpired residue of the current lease was 79 years.

I purchased a 1st floor flat in Rayners Lane, conveyancing was carried out in 2008. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Comparable properties in Rayners Lane with over 90 years remaining are worth £202,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 levied per year. The lease finishes on 21st October 2086

With only 60 years unexpired we estimate the price of your lease extension to range between £20,900 and £24,200 as well as costs.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to advice on a more accurate figure without more detailed investigations. Do not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other issues that need to be considered and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward based on this information without first getting professional advice.