I wish to let out my leasehold apartment in Roehampton. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask her. Do I need to ask my freeholder for their consent?

The lease dictates relations between the landlord and you the flat owner; specifically, it will indicate if subletting is not allowed, or permitted but only subject to certain conditions. The rule is that if the lease contains no specific ban or restriction, subletting is allowed. The majority of leases in Roehampton do not prevent subletting altogether – such a provision would adversely affect the market value the flat. Instead, there is usually a basic requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly supplying a copy of the tenancy agreement.

Expecting to complete next month on a studio apartment in Roehampton. Conveyancing lawyers inform me that they will have a report out to me within the next couple of days. What should I be looking out for?

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

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

My wife and I purchased a leasehold flat in Roehampton. Conveyancing and Norwich and Peterborough Building Society mortgage organised. 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 1997. The conveyancing practitioner in Roehampton who previously acted has now retired.Do I pay?

The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to make sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. You do not need to incur the fees of a Roehampton conveyancing lawyer to do this as it can be done on-line for a few pound. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

I work for a busy estate agency in Roehampton where we have experienced a few leasehold sales put at risk due to short leases. I have been given contradictory information from local Roehampton conveyancing solicitors. Could you shed some light as to whether the seller of a flat can initiate the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that 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 sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or simultaneously with 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 buyer.

We expect to complete our sale of a £300000 garden flat in Roehampton in 8 days. The landlords agents has quoted £324 for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and 3 years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Roehampton?

Roehampton conveyancing on leasehold flats normally requires the buyer’s conveyancer submitting enquiries for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to address such questions most will be willing to do so. They may invoice a reasonable administration fee for answering questions or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average fee for the paperwork that you are referring to is £350, in some situations it is above £800. The management information fee demanded by the landlord must be sent together with a synopsis of rights and obligations in respect of administration charges, without which the invoice is not strictly payable. Reality however dictates that you have no option but to pay whatever is requested of you if you want to complete the sale of your home.

Having spent years of negotiations we simply can't agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Roehampton. Does the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal have jurisdiction to calculate the appropriate figures?

in cases where there is a absentee freeholder or where there is dispute about the premium for a lease extension, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 it is possible to make an application to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) to assess the price.

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement decision for a Roehampton property is 19 St. Margarets Crescent in August 2010. the tribunal was of the view that the premium to be paid by the leaseholder for the freehold reversion was £51,983.00 This case related to 3 flats. The the unexpired residue of the current lease was 66.25 years.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Roehampton