Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my garden apartment in North West London.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just received a half-yearly maintenance charge demand – 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 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've found a house that appears to tick a lot of boxes, at a great price which is making it all the more appealing. I have subsequently found out that it's a leasehold as opposed to freehold. I am assuming that there are issues buying a house with a leasehold title in North West London. Conveyancing lawyers have are soon to be appointed. Will they explain the issues?

Most houses in North West London are freehold rather than leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local solicitor used to dealing with such properties who can help the conveyancing process. it is apparent that you are purchasing in North West London in which case you should be shopping around for a North West 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 number of years remaining. Being a tenant you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions such as requiring the landlord’sconsent to carry out changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a contribution towards the maintenance of the communal areas where the house is located on an estate. Your conveyancer will appraise you on the various issues.

I am employed by a reputable estate agent office in North West London where we see a number of flat sales derailed as a result of short leases. I have been given contradictory information from local North West London conveyancing solicitors. Please can you confirm whether the seller of a flat can instigate the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

Provided that the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the buyer can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done prior to, or at the same time as completion of the sale.

Alternatively, it may be possible 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.

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in North West London with the aim of saving time on the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in North West London can be reduced where you get in touch lawyers the minute you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers representatives.
• Many freeholders or Management Companies in North West London levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should discover the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack sought on or before finding a buyer, thus reducing delays. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most common cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in North West London.
• Some North West London leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are able to meet the annual 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 actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their lawyers.
• If there is a history of any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are settled prior to the flat being put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where a dispute is unresolved. You may need to swallow your pride 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 particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to present the dispute as over as opposed to unresolved.
• You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but it would be wise to double-check via your conveyancers. A buyer’s conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the lease term is below 80 years. It is therefore important at an early stage that you consider whether the lease for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

We expect to complete our sale of a £ 400000 garden flat in North West London on Thursday in a week. The managing agents has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and 3 years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in North West London?

North West London conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes ordinarily involves administration charges invoiced by managing agents :

• Addressing pre-contract questions
• Where consent is required before sale in North West 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 conveyancer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for North West London leasehold premises is £350. For North West 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 required to provide the information.

North West London Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Sample of Questions you should ask before Purchasing

What is the the remaining lease term?