I would like to let out my leasehold flat in Rogiet. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask her. Do I need to ask my freeholder for permission?

Even though your previous Rogiet conveyancing lawyer is no longer available you can review your lease to see if it allows you to sublet the apartment. The rule is that if the deeds are non-specific, subletting is allowed. There may be a precondition that you need to obtain permission via your landlord or other appropriate person in advance of subletting. The net result is you not allowed to sublet in the absence of prior consent. The consent must not not be unreasonably refused ore delayed. If your lease does not allow you to sublet you will need to ask your landlord for their consent.

I have just started marketing my 2 bed flat in Rogiet.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just had a half-yearly maintenance charge invoice – Do I pay up?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should clear the service charge 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 management companies 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. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

Back In 2004, I bought a leasehold house in Rogiet. Conveyancing and The Mortgage Works mortgage are in place. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the freehold. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1994. The conveyancing practitioner in Rogiet who previously acted has now retired.Do I pay?

The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to make sure that this person is in fact the new freeholder. You do not need to incur the fees of a Rogiet conveyancing lawyer to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for a few pound. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

I am a negotiator for a reputable estate agent office in Rogiet where we have experienced a few leasehold sales derailed due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received contradictory information from local Rogiet conveyancing solicitors. Please can you shed some light as to whether the owner of a flat can start 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 start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the proposed purchaser can avoid having 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 sale.

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 purchaser.

All being well we will complete the disposal of our £325000 maisonette in Rogiet in six days. The freeholder has quoted £408 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 Rogiet?

Rogiet conveyancing on leasehold flats usually necessitates administration charges invoiced by managing agents :

• Addressing pre-contract enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in Rogiet
• Supplying insurance information
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your solicitor will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Rogiet leasehold premises is £350. For Rogiet 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.

Rogiet Leasehold Conveyancing - Sample of Queries before buying

Are any of leasehold owners in arrears of their service charge payments? Make sure you enquire if there is anything that is prohibited in the lease. By way of example it is reasonably common in Rogiet leases that pets are not allowed in in a block in Rogiet. If you like the propertyin Rogiet but your cat is not allowed to move with you then you have a very difficult decision. The prefered form of lease arrangement is a share of the freehold. In this arrangement the leaseholders have being in charge if their destiny and even though a managing agent is frequently retained if the building is larger than a house conversion, the managing agent retained by the leaseholders.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Rogiet