I wish to let out my leasehold flat in North East London. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask him. Do I need to ask my freeholder for permission?

Even though your last North East London conveyancing lawyer is not around you can review your lease to check if you are permitted to let out the apartment. The rule is that if the lease is silent, subletting is permitted. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you must obtain consent via your landlord or some other party prior to subletting. This means you not allowed to sublet in the absence of prior permission. The consent must not not be unreasonably withheld. If the lease prohibits you from subletting the property you should ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

Due to complete next month on a studio apartment in North East London. Conveyancing solicitors assured me that they report fully tomorrow. What should I be looking out for?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in North East London should include some of the following:

• Do you need to have carpet in the flat or are you allowed wood flooring?

Are pets allowed in the flat?

Does the lease prevent you from letting out the flat, or having a home office for business

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 premises and do you know what it means in practice?

The landlord’s obligations to repair and maintain the building. It is important that you know who is responsible for the repair and maintenance of every part of the building

Responsibility for repairing the window frames For a comprehensive list of information to be included in your report on your leasehold property in North East London please enquire of your conveyancer in advance of your conveyancing in North East London

I've found a house that appears to meet my requirements, at a reasonable figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have subsequently been informed that the title is leasehold as opposed to freehold. I would have thought that there are issues buying a leasehold house in North East London. Conveyancing advisers have are soon to be instructed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in North East London are freehold rather than leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer used to dealing with such properties who can help the conveyancing process. We note that you are buying in North East London so you should seriously consider shopping around for a North East London conveyancing practitioner and check that they are used to transacting on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the unexpired lease term. As a tenant you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions for example obtaining the freeholder’spermission to carry out alterations. You may also be required to pay a maintenance charge towards the upkeep of the estate where the property is located on an estate. Your lawyer will advise you fully on all the issues.

If all goes to plan we aim to complete the disposal of our £325000 apartment in North East London next Wednesday . The landlords agents has quoted £360 for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and previous years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in North East London?

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

• Addressing conveyancing due diligence enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in North East London
• 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 lawyer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for North East London leasehold property is £350. For North East London 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 provide the information.

Are there frequently found problems that you encounter in leases for North East London properties?

Leasehold conveyancing in North East London is not unique. All leases are individual and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain clauses are missing. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• A provision to repair to or maintain parts of the premises
• Insurance obligations
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

A defective lease will likely cause issues when trying to sell a property primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Lloyds TSB Bank, Chelsea Building Society, and Bank of Ireland all have express requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is problematic they may refuse to provide security, obliging the buyer to pull out.

North East London Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Queries before Purchasing

Does the lease have in excess of 90 years remaining? In the main the outlay for major works tend not to be incorporated into the maintenance charges, albeit that there some managing agents in North East London obliged leasehold owners to pay into a reserve fund created for the specific purpose of building a fund for major repairs or maintenance. Please tell me if there are any major works in the near future that will likely add a premium to the service fees?

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in North East London