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

Notwithstanding that your previous Shepperton conveyancing solicitor is no longer available you can check your lease to see if it allows you to sublet the premises. The accepted inference is that if the deeds are silent, subletting is allowed. There may be a precondition that you must seek permission from your landlord or other appropriate person before subletting. The net result is you not allowed to sublet in the absence of first obtaining consent. The consent is not allowed to be unreasonably refused ore delayed. If your lease prohibits you from subletting the property you should ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

I today plan to offer on a house that seems to meet my requirements, at a great 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 house with a leasehold title in Shepperton. Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Shepperton are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor used to dealing with such properties who can assist with the conveyancing process. it is apparent that you are purchasing in Shepperton so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Shepperton conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they have experience in advising on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority 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 such as obtaining the freeholder’spermission to carry out alterations. You may also be required to pay a service charge towards the upkeep of the estate where the property is located on an estate. Your lawyer will appraise you on the various issues.

Last month I purchased a leasehold house in Shepperton. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to my ownership?

In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. However, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to be sure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.

If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).

I work for a busy estate agency in Shepperton where we have experienced a few leasehold sales jeopardised as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received conflicting advice from local Shepperton conveyancing solicitors. Could you confirm whether the owner of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

As long as the seller has owned the lease 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. This means that the buyer can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or at the same time as 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.

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

When appointing a conveyancer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Shepperton conveyancing practice) it is most important that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We recommend that you talk with several firms including non Shepperton conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions could be helpful:

• How experienced is the practice with lease extension legislation?

After years of correspondence we cannot agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Shepperton. Can we issue an application to the Residential Property Tribunal Service?

in cases where there is a absentee landlord or if there is disagreement about what the lease extension should cost, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the LVT to arrive at the price.

An example of a Lease Extension case for a Shepperton residence is 147 Redford Close in June 2012. The Tribunal determined the lease extension premium to be at £4,200 This case affected 1 flat. The unexpired lease term was 82.93 years.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Shepperton