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

The lease dictates the relationship between the freeholder and you the flat owner; specifically, it will say if subletting is not allowed, or permitted but only subject to certain caveats. The accepted inference is that if the lease contains no specific ban or restriction, subletting is permitted. Most leases in Selsdon do not contain subletting altogether – such a clause would adversely affect the market value the property. In most cases there is simply a requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly supplying a duplicate of the sublease.

I only have 62 years left on my lease in Selsdon. I now want to get lease extension but my landlord is missing. What should I do?

On the basis that you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be granted an extra 90 years by the magistrate. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you have made all reasonable attempts to locate the landlord. On the whole a specialist should be useful to conduct investigations and prepare a report which can be accepted by the court as proof that the landlord can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a solicitor in relation to devolving into the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court overseeing Selsdon.

I work for a busy estate agent office in Selsdon where we see a few leasehold sales derailed as a result of short leases. I have received conflicting advice from local Selsdon conveyancing firms. Could you shed some light as to whether the vendor of a flat can start the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

As long as 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 buyer can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. 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 buyer.

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

When appointing a conveyancer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Selsdon conveyancing firm) it is imperative that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We recommend that you talk with several firms including non Selsdon conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions might be of use:

• How familiar is the firm with lease extension legislation?
• If they are not ALEP accredited then what is the reason?

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Selsdon from the point of view of expediting the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Selsdon can be bypassed where you appoint lawyers as soon as you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation needed by the buyers representatives.
• The majority landlords or managing agents in Selsdon levy fees for providing management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the actual amount of the charges. The management information can be applied for as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. The typical amount of time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most frequent reason for frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Selsdon.
• A minority of Selsdon leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are able to meet the annual service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their lawyers.
• If there is a history of conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are settled before the property is marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be nervous about purchasing a flat where there is an ongoing dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to discharge any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to present the dispute as historic as opposed to ongoing.
• You may think that you are aware of the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be advisable verify this by asking 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 80 years. It is therefore essential at an as soon as possible that you identify whether the lease for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

I am the proprietor of a garden flat in Selsdon. Given that I can not reach agreement with the freeholder, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal make a decision on the amount payable for a lease extension?

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

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement case for a Selsdon flat is The Woodlands 95 Purley Park Road in April 2009. The Tribunals own valuation produced the fi
gure of £37,912. This case was in relation to 6 flats. The remaining number of years on the lease was 78.32 years.

I inherited a ground floor flat in Selsdon, conveyancing was carried out in 1997. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Comparable flats in Selsdon with over 90 years remaining are worth £173,000. The ground rent is £60 levied per year. The lease ceases on 21st October 2078

With just 52 years unexpired we estimate the price of your lease extension to be between £35,200 and £40,600 as well as legals.

The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to supply the actual costs without more comprehensive investigations. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt additional issues that need to be taken into account and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward based on this information before getting professional advice.