I would like to rent out my leasehold apartment in Plaistow. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask her. Do I need to ask my freeholder for their consent?

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

I am a negotiator for a long established estate agent office in Plaistow where we see a few flat sales put at risk due to short leases. I have received conflicting advice from local Plaistow conveyancing firms. Can you clarify whether the owner of a flat can commence the lease extension process for the buyer?

As long as the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the buyer need not have to wait 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.

An alternative approach is 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 buyer.

Can you offer any advice when it comes to finding a Plaistow conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a property lawyer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Plaistow conveyancing practice) it is most important that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We advise that you speak with two or three firms including non Plaistow conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be useful:

• How many lease extensions have they conducted in Plaistow in the last twenty four months?
• Can they put you in touch with client in Plaistow who can give a testimonial?

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Plaistow with the purpose of saving time on the sale process?

• Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Plaistow can be avoided where you get in touch lawyers the minute you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation needed by the buyers solicitors.
• Some Plaistow leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, it would be prudent to notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is financially capable of paying 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 service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their lawyers.
• If you have had any disputes with your landlord or managing agents it is essential that these are resolved prior to the flat being put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be concerned about purchasing a property where a dispute is unresolved. You may need to swallow your pride and pay 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 prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to present the dispute as historic as opposed to unresolved.
• If you are supposed to have a share in the Management Company, you should ensure that you have the original share certificate. Organising a duplicate share certificate is often a time consuming process and frustrates many a Plaistow home move. If a new share is needed, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (if applicable) for this sooner rather than later.
• You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but you should double-check via your solicitors. A buyer’s lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to where the lease term is below 80 years. In the circumstances it is essential at an as soon as possible that you identify whether the lease term for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale.

Completion in due on the sale of our £ 175000 apartment in Plaistow next Tuesday . The management company has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and 3 years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in Plaistow?

Plaistow conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes ordinarily necessitates administration charges raised by freeholders :

• Addressing pre-exchange questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Plaistow
• Supplying insurance information
• 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 Plaistow leasehold property is £350. For Plaistow 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 supply the information.

Following months of negotiations we cannot agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Plaistow. Does the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal have jurisdiction to calculate the appropriate figures?

Most certainly. We are happy to put you in touch with a Plaistow conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Plaistow flat is 46 Credon Road in January 2014. On 11 September 2013 Deputy District Judge Price sitting at the Bow County Court made a vesting order that the freeholder surrender his lease and be granted a new lease of the Premises on such terms as may be determined by the First Tier Tribunal (Property Chamber).The appropriate sum as concluded by the Tribunal was £7225 This case affected 1 flat. The remaining number of years on the lease was 69.77 years.

I acquired a 2 bed flat in Plaistow, conveyancing having been completed in 2002. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Comparable properties in Plaistow with a long lease are worth £222,000. The ground rent is £65 invoiced every year. The lease terminates on 21st October 2096

With 70 years left to run we estimate the premium for your lease extension to be between £13,300 and £15,400 plus legals.

The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to advice on a more accurate figure without more detailed due diligence. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt other concerns that need to be taken into account and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward placing reliance on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.