Jane (my partner) and I may need to rent out our Preston Park 1st floor flat temporarily due to taking a sabbatical. We used a Preston Park conveyancing firm in 2003 but they have since shut and we did not think at the time seek any guidance as to whether the lease permits subletting. How do we find out?

A small minority of properties in Preston Park do contain a provision to say that subletting is only allowed with permission. 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 only have 72 years left on my flat in Preston Park. I am keen to get lease extension but my landlord is missing. What should I do?

If you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be lengthened by the magistrate. You will be obliged to prove that you have used your best endeavours to locate the freeholder. In some cases an enquiry agent should be helpful to carry out a search and prepare a report to be accepted by the court as proof that the landlord can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a property lawyer in relation to proving the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Preston Park.

Expecting to complete next month on a ground floor flat in Preston Park. Conveyancing lawyers have said that they will have a report out to me next week. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Preston Park should include some of the following:

• You should receive a copy of the lease

I today plan to offer on a house that seems to be perfect, at a great figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have subsequently been informed that the title is leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are particular concerns purchasing a house with a leasehold title in Preston Park. Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed. Will they explain the issues?

Most houses in Preston Park are freehold and not leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area can help the conveyancing process. it is apparent that you are purchasing in Preston Park in which case you should be looking for a Preston Park conveyancing solicitor and check that they are used to dealing with leasehold houses. First you will need to check the unexpired lease term. As a lessee you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions for example requiring the landlord’sconsent to carry out changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a service charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the property is part of an estate. Your lawyer should advise you fully on all the issues.

I am looking at a couple of maisonettes in Preston Park which have approximately fifty years unexpired on the lease term. Will this present a problem?

There is no doubt about it. A leasehold apartment in Preston Park is a wasting asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The closer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it adversely affects the value of the property. The majority of buyers and lenders, leases with less than 75 years become less and less marketable. On a more upbeat note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the property for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of a residence with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Preston Park conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. A more straightforward and quicker method of extending would be to contact your landlord directly and sound him out on the prospect of extending the lease They may agree to a smaller lump sum and an increase in the ground rent, but to shorter extension terms in return. You need to ensure that any new terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.

Preston Park Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Questions you should ask before Purchasing

The majority of Preston Park leasehold properties will be liable to pay a service charge for the upkeep of the building levied by the freeholder. Where you acquire the apartment you will have to meet this liability, usually in instalments throughout the year. This may be anything from a couple of hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for buildings with lifts and large common grounds. There will also be a rentcharge to be met yearly, this is usually not a significant amount, say approximately £50-£100 but you should to enquire as sometimes it could be many hundreds of pounds. If a Preston Park lease has fewer than eighty years it will affect the salability of the flat. It is worth checking with your mortgage company that they are content with residual term of the lease. Leases with less than 80 years remaining means that you will most likely need a lease extension sooner rather than later and you need to have some idea of what this will be. For most Preston Parklease extensions you will be be obliged to have owned the property for a couple of years in order to be eligible to extend the lease. Is the freehold reversion owned collectively by the leaseholders?

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Preston Park