I wish to rent out my leasehold flat in West Harrow. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask her. Is permission from the freeholder required?

The lease governs the relationship between the freeholder and you the flat owner; specifically, it will indicate if subletting is not allowed, or permitted but only subject to certain conditions. The rule is that if the lease contains no specific ban or restriction, subletting is permitted. Most leases in West Harrow do not prevent an absolute prevention of subletting – such a provision would adversely affect the market value the property. In most cases there is a basic requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly sending a copy of the tenancy agreement.

Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only Sixty One years left on my lease in West Harrow. I am keen to extend my lease but my landlord is can not be found. What should I do?

If you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be granted an extra 90 years by the magistrate. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you have done all that could be expected to track down the lessor. In some cases an enquiry agent should be useful to carry out a search and to produce a report which can be accepted by the court as proof that the landlord is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer in relation to devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court covering West Harrow.

Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my ground floor apartment in West Harrow.Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon but I have just had a yearly service charge invoice – what should I do?

The sensible thing to do is clear 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 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 am employed by a busy estate agent office in West Harrow where we have witnessed a few leasehold sales put at risk as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received inconsistent advice from local West Harrow conveyancing solicitors. Can you clarify whether the owner of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

Provided that 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 proposed purchaser 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 simultaneously with completion of the sale.

An alternative approach is to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord 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 buyer.

What are your top tips when it comes to finding a West Harrow conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

If you are instructing a property lawyer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a West Harrow conveyancing firm) it is most important that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We suggested that you make enquires with several firms including non West Harrow conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be of use:

• How familiar is the firm with lease extension legislation?
• What are the costs for lease extension conveyancing?

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

You certainly can. We are happy to put you in touch with a West Harrow conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a West Harrow property is flat 93b Welldon Crescent in May 2009. The Tribunals valuation for a 90-year lease extension of this fat was £13,171 This case was in relation to 1 flat. The the unexpired term as at the valuation date was 75.25 years.

West Harrow Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Sample of Questions you should ask Prior to buying

The best form of lease arrangement is if the freehold interest is owned by the leaseholders. In this arrangement the lessees enjoy control and even though a managing agent is usually employed if it is bigger than a house conversion, the managing agent is directed by the tenants.