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

Notwithstanding that your previous Spitalfields conveyancing lawyer is no longer available you can review your lease to see if you are permitted to let out the property. The rule is that if the lease is non-specific, subletting is permitted. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you must obtain consent from your landlord or some other party prior to subletting. The net result is that you cannot sublet without first obtaining permission. The consent should not be unreasonably refused ore delayed. If the lease prohibits you from subletting the property you should ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

I have recently realised that I have Sixty One years unexpired on my flat in Spitalfields. I now wish to extend my lease but my freeholder is can not be found. What options are available to me?

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 enable the lease to be extended by the magistrate. However, you will be required to prove that you or your lawyers have used your best endeavours to track down the freeholder. For most situations a specialist may be useful to carry out a search and prepare an expert document to be used as proof that the freeholder can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a property lawyer in relation to proving the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Spitalfields.

Last month I purchased a leasehold flat in Spitalfields. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. Strange as it may seem, 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 be sure 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).

If all goes to plan we aim to complete the sale of our £ 325000 maisonette in Spitalfields next Friday . The freeholder has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and previous years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge such fees for a leasehold conveyance in Spitalfields?

Spitalfields conveyancing on leasehold flats nine out of ten times results in administration charges raised by management companies :

• Completing pre-exchange enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in Spitalfields
• Supplying insurance information
• 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 Spitalfields leasehold premises is £350. For Spitalfields 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 supply the information.

Having spent years of negotiations we are unable to agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Spitalfields. Can we issue an application to the Residential Property Tribunal Service?

You certainly can. We can put you in touch with a Spitalfields conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement matter before the tribunal for a Spitalfields flat is 1-41 Royal Tower Lodge 40 Cartwright Street in April 2013. the tribunal adding the agreed value of capitalised ground rents and the reversion the price to be paid for the freehold was £1,187,000 This case was in relation to 41 flats. The the unexpired term as at the valuation date was 107 years.

When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Spitalfields what are the most frequent lease problems?

Leasehold conveyancing in Spitalfields is not unique. Most leases are individual and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain clauses are not included. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• A provision to repair to or maintain parts of the property
• A duty to insure the building
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

You will have difficulties when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Lloyds TSB Bank, Barnsley Building Society, and Nottingham Building Society all have very detailed conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to grant the mortgage, forcing the purchaser to pull out.

I own a 2 bed flat in Spitalfields, conveyancing formalities finalised 2010. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Corresponding flats in Spitalfields with an extended lease are worth £170,000. The ground rent is £60 invoiced annually. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2085

With 59 years remaining on your lease we estimate the premium for your lease extension to span between £21,900 and £25,200 plus professional fees.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure without more comprehensive due diligence. You should not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt other concerns that need to be considered and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not take any other action based on this information without first getting professional advice.