I wish to rent out my leasehold apartment in St Margarets. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask him. Do I need to ask my freeholder for their consent?

A small minority of properties in St Margarets do contain a provision to say that subletting is only permitted with prior consent from the landlord. The landlord cannot unreasonably withhold but, in such cases, they would need to review references. Experience suggests 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 permission.

I have just started marketing my ground floor flat in St Margarets.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just received a half-yearly service charge invoice – what should I do?

It best that you clear 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 management companies 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.

Last month I purchased a leasehold property in St Margarets. Do I have any liability for service charges relating to a period prior to my ownership?

In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. However, 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 ensure 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).

I am employed by a reputable estate agency in St Margarets where we see a number of leasehold sales derailed as a result of short leases. I have been given conflicting advice from local St Margarets conveyancing firms. Could you shed some light as to whether the vendor of a flat can instigate the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

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 need not have to sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. 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 sale.

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 purchaser.

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in St Margarets with the aim of expediting the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in St Margarets can be bypassed if you appoint lawyers the minute you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation needed by the purchasers’ conveyancers.
• Many landlords or Management Companies in St Margarets levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should discover the actual amount of the charges. The management information can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The typical amount of time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most usual reason for frustration in leasehold conveyancing in St Margarets.
• If you have carried out any alterations to the premises would they have required Landlord’s consent? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Most leases in St Margarets state that internal structural alterations or laying down wooden flooring necessitate a licence issued by the Landlord acquiescing to such alterations. Should you fail to have the consents in place do not communicate with the landlord without checking with your solicitor in advance.
• Some St Margarets leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, it would be prudent to place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. The bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is financially capable of paying 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.
• You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but it would be wise to verify this via your solicitors. A buyer’s conveyancer will be unlikely to recommend their client to to exchange contracts if the lease term is under 75 years. In the circumstances it is essential at an early stage that you identify whether the lease term for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

Having spent years of dialogue we cannot agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in St Margarets. Can we issue an application to the Residential Property Tribunal Service?

in cases where there is a absentee landlord or if there is dispute about what the lease extension should cost, under the relevant legislation it is possible to make an application to the LVT to judgment on the sum to be paid.

An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a St Margarets residence is Ground Floor Flat 91 Bath Road in May 2009. in a case where the freeholder could not be traced, the Brentford County Court ordered that the Lease be surrendered in return for the grant of a new lease of the Premises at a premium determined by the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal. The tribunal concluded that the price payable by the Applicant for the new lease of the premises be £15,900 This case was in relation to 1 flat. The unexpired term was 60.45 years.

I purchased a garden flat in St Margarets, conveyancing formalities finalised 6 years ago. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Equivalent properties in St Margarets with a long lease are worth £240,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £60 invoiced annually. The lease ceases on 21st October 2086

With just 60 years unexpired the likely cost is going to span between £22,800 and £26,400 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The figure above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to supply a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed due diligence. Do not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be additional issues that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action based on this information before getting professional advice.