I would like to let out my leasehold flat in West Ealing. 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 last West Ealing conveyancing solicitor is not around you can review your lease to check if it allows you to sublet the premises. The rule is that if the deeds are silent, subletting is permitted. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you must seek consent via your landlord or some other party prior to subletting. The net result is that you cannot sublet in the absence of first obtaining consent. The consent is not allowed to be unreasonably turned down. If the lease prohibits you from subletting the property you should ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

I’m about to sell my basement flat in West Ealing.Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon but I have just had a yearly maintenance charge demand – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should discharge 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 management companies 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. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in West Ealing with the aim of expediting the sale process?

• Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in West Ealing can be bypassed where you instruct lawyers as soon as you market your property and request that they start to collate the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers representatives.
• The majority freeholders or managing agents in West Ealing charge for supplying management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the fee that they propose to charge. The management information sought on or before finding a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The average time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most frequent cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in West Ealing.

If you have carried out any alterations to the property would they have required Landlord’s approval? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? West Ealing leases often stipulate that internal structural changes or addition of wooden flooring necessitate a licence issued by the Landlord approving such alterations. Should you dont have the paperwork in place do not contact the landlord without contacting your conveyancer first.

If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should make sure that you are holding the original share document. Organising a new share certificate is often a time consuming process and slows down many a West Ealing home move. If a duplicate share certificate is required, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (where relevant) for this as soon as possible.

You may think that you are aware of the number of years remaining on your lease but you should verify this by asking your solicitors. A purchaser's conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the lease term is less than 80 years. In the circumstances it is essential at an early stage that you identify whether the lease for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale.

All being well we will complete our sale of a £350000 apartment in West Ealing next week. The landlords agents has quoted £420 for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and previous years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in West Ealing?

For the majority of leasehold sales in West Ealing conveyancing will involve, queries regarding the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :

• Answering pre-exchange questions
• Where consent is required before sale in West Ealing
• Copies of the building insurance and schedule
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your conveyancer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for West Ealing leasehold property is £350. For West Ealing 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 obliged to supply the information.

I inherited a first floor flat in West Ealing. Given that I can not reach agreement with the landlord, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal make a decision on the sum due for the purchase of the freehold?

in cases where there is a missing freeholder or where there is dispute about the premium for a lease extension, under the relevant statutes you can apply to the LVT to determine the sum to be paid.

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement case for a West Ealing flat is 6 Jessamine Road in August 2013. The Tribunals valuation (as annexed to the decision) calculated the amount payable as £18,355 for the freehold reversion This case affected 2 flats. The the number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 72.39 years.

What makes a West Ealing lease unacceptable for security purposes?

Leasehold conveyancing in West Ealing is not unique. Most leases are unique and drafting errors can result in certain provisions are erroneous. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain elements of the premises
• A duty to insure the building
• A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

You may have difficulties when selling your property if you have a defective lease as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Halifax, Norwich and Peterborough Building Society, and TSB all have express requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is defective they may refuse to provide security, forcing the purchaser to pull out.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in West Ealing