I want to let out my leasehold flat in St John's Wood. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask him. Do I need to ask my freeholder for permission?

Notwithstanding that your previous St John's Wood conveyancing lawyer is no longer available you can check your lease to check if you are permitted to let out the apartment. The rule is that if the deeds are non-specific, subletting is permitted. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you must obtain permission from your landlord or other appropriate person before subletting. The net result is you not allowed to sublet in the absence of first obtaining permission. Such consent must not not be unreasonably withheld. If the lease does not allow you to sublet you will need to ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

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

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in St John's Wood should include some of the following:

• Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, freeholder
• The physical extent of the demise. This will be the apartment itself but could also include a loft or basement if applicable.
• Does the lease prohibit wood flooring?
• The landlord’s rights to access the flat you be made aware that your landlord has rights of access and I know how much notice s/he must provide.
• Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your property and do you know what it means in practice?
• Responsibility for repairing the window frames
• What the implications are if you breach a clause of your lease?

I’m about to sell my 2 bed apartment in St John's Wood.Conveyancing has not commenced but I have just received a half-yearly service charge invoice – Do I pay up?

The sensible thing to do is pay 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 managing agents will not acknowledge the buyer until 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.

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in St John's Wood with the intention of expediting the sale process?

• Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in St John's Wood can be avoided where you appoint lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and ask them to collate the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers conveyancers.
• The majority landlords or Management Companies in St John's Wood charge for supplying management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should find out the fee that they propose to charge. The management information sought as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. The average time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most frequent reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in St John's Wood.
• Some St John's Wood leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is able to meet the yearly 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 landlord or managing agents it is essential that these are resolved before the property is put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where a dispute is ongoing. You may have to bite the bullet and discharge any arrears of service charge or settle 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 buyers, but it is better to present the dispute as historic rather than unresolved.
• If you hold a share in a the freehold, you should ensure that you hold the original share certificate. Organising a duplicate share certificate is often a lengthy formality and frustrates many a St John's Wood home move. Where a duplicate share certificate is needed, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (where applicable) for this at the earliest opportunity.

All being well we will complete our sale of a £ 325000 apartment in St John's Wood next Tuesday . The landlords agents has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and previous years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in St John's Wood?

St John's Wood conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes usually involves the purchaser’s solicitor submitting questions for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to address these enquiries the majority will be content to do so. They are at liberty invoice a reasonable administration fee for responding to questions or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average costs for the paperwork that you are referring to is £350, in some transactions it is in excess of £800. The management information fee demanded by the landlord must be accompanied by a summary of entitlements and obligations in relation to administration charges, without which the invoice is not strictly payable. In reality you have little choice but to pay whatever is requested of you if you want to sell the property.

I have tried to negotiate informally with with my landlord to extend my lease without any joy. Can one make an application to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal? Can you recommend a St John's Wood conveyancing firm to represent me?

Most definitely. We can put you in touch with a St John's Wood conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a St John's Wood property is Garden Flat 195 Goldhurst Terrace in May 2012. The Tribunal held in accordance with section 48 and Schedule 13 of the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 that the premium for the extended lease should be £60,855.00. This case related to 1 flat. The unexpired term was 60.16 years.

I acquired a studio flat in St John's Wood, conveyancing having been completed 9 years ago. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Equivalent properties in St John's Wood with over 90 years remaining are worth £213,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £45 invoiced annually. The lease expires on 21st October 2097

With only 71 years left to run we estimate the premium for your lease extension to be between £12,400 and £14,200 plus costs.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of detailed due diligence. You should not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be 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 without first seeking the advice of a professional.