Jane (my partner) and I may need to rent out our St Giles 1st floor flat for a while due to a career opportunity. We used a St Giles conveyancing practice in 2001 but they have closed and we did not have the foresight to get any guidance as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?

A small minority of properties in St Giles do contain a provision to say that subletting is only allowed with permission. The landlord cannot unreasonably refuse but, in such cases, they would need to review references. Experience dictates that problems are usually caused by unsatisfactory tenants rather than owner-occupiers and for that reason you can expect the freeholder to take up the references and consider them carefully before granting consent.

Due to complete next month on a leasehold property in St Giles. Conveyancing lawyers assured me that they report fully tomorrow. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in St Giles should include some of the following:

• Setting out your legal entitlements in respect of common areas in the block.E.G., does the lease grant a right of way over an accessway or staircase?

I have just appointed agents to market my garden apartment in St Giles.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just received a quarterly maintenance charge invoice – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

It best that you 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 managing agents 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 own a leasehold flat in St Giles. Conveyancing and Clydesdale mortgage are in place. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1998. The conveyancing solicitor in St Giles who acted for me is not around.What should I do?

The first thing you should do is make enquiries of HMLR to make sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a St Giles conveyancing lawyer to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. Rest assured that regardless, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I have had difficulty in trying to purchase the freehold in St Giles. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal adjudicate on premiums?

if there is a absentee landlord or if there is dispute about what the lease extension should cost, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) to decide the premium.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a St Giles flat is Flat 89 Trinity Court Grays Inn Road in February 2013. the Tribunal found that the premium to be paid by the tenant on the grant of a new lease, in accordance with section 56 and Schedule 13 to the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 should be £36,229. This case was in relation to 1 flat. The the number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 66.8 years.

What makes a St Giles lease unacceptable for security purposes?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in St Giles. Most leases are unique and drafting errors can sometimes mean that certain provisions are wrong. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain elements of the property
• Insurance obligations
• A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
• Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

You may have a problem when selling your property if you have a defective lease as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Lloyds TSB Bank, Barnsley Building Society, and Clydesdale all have express conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is defective they may refuse to grant the mortgage, forcing the buyer to withdraw.