I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Romford. Before I set the wheels in motion I want to be sure as to the number of years remaining on the lease.

If the lease is registered - and 99.9% are in Romford - then the leasehold title will always include the basic details of the lease, namely the date; the term; and the original parties. From a conveyancing perspective such details then enable any prospective buyer and lender to confirm that any lease they are looking at is the one relevant to that title.For any other purpose, such as confirming how long the term was granted for and calculating what is left, then the register should be sufficient on it's own.

I wish to let out my leasehold flat in Romford. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask him. Is permission from the freeholder required?

Even though your last Romford conveyancing lawyer is no longer available you can check your lease to check if it allows you to sublet the apartment. The rule is that if the deeds are silent, subletting is allowed. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you need to obtain consent via your landlord or some other party prior to subletting. This means that you cannot sublet in the absence of prior consent. Such consent must not not be unreasonably refused ore delayed. If your lease prohibits you from subletting the property you should ask your landlord for their consent.

I’m about to sell my 2 bed flat in Romford.Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon but I have just received a half-yearly service charge demand – what should I do?

It best that you discharge the invoice 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. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold flat in Romford. Conveyancing and Lloyds TSB Bank mortgage are in place. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the freehold. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1997. The conveyancing practitioner in Romford who previously acted has now retired.Any advice?

The first thing you should do is make enquiries of the Land Registry to make sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. There is no need to incur the fees of a Romford conveyancing lawyer to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for £3. You should note that regardless, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I am a negotiator for a busy estate agency in Romford where we have experienced a number of flat sales derailed due to short leases. I have received inconsistent advice from local Romford conveyancing firms. Please can you clarify whether the vendor of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the proposed purchaser can avoid having to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done prior to, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.

An alternative approach is to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord 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.

My wife and I have hit a brick wall in trying to purchase the freehold in Romford. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal adjudicate on premiums?

You certainly can. We are happy to put you in touch with a Romford conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Romford residence is 37 Lodge Court High Street in November 2013. the decision of the LVT was that the premium to be paid for the new lease was £25,559 This case was in relation to 1 flat. The unexpired lease term was 57.5 years.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Romford