Harry (my fiance) and I may need to rent out our St James ground floor flat temporarily due to a new job. We used a St James conveyancing firm in 2001 but they have closed and we did not have the foresight to seek any guidance as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?

Even though your previous St James conveyancing solicitor is no longer around you can check your lease to see if it allows you to sublet the property. The accepted inference is that if the lease is silent, subletting is allowed. There may be a precondition that you need to seek permission via your landlord or some other party prior to subletting. This means you not allowed to sublet without first obtaining permission. Such consent must not not be unreasonably withheld. If the lease does not allow you to sublet you should ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

I have recently realised that I have Fifty years remaining on my flat in St James. I need to extend my lease but my freeholder is absent. What should I do?

If you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be extended by the magistrate. However, you will be required to prove that you or your lawyers have made all reasonable attempts to locate the landlord. In some cases an enquiry agent would be useful to conduct investigations and prepare a report which can be accepted by the court as evidence that the landlord is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a property lawyer in relation to devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing St James.

I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that appears to meet my requirements, at a great figure which is making it more attractive. I have just been informed that it's a leasehold as opposed to freehold. I am assuming that there are particular concerns buying a leasehold house in St James. Conveyancing advisers have are about to be appointed. Will they explain the issues?

Most houses in St James are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area can assist with the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are buying in St James in which case you should be looking for a St James conveyancing practitioner and be sure that they have experience in dealing with leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the unexpired lease term. As a tenant you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want to the property. The lease will likely included provisions for example obtaining the landlord’spermission to carry out changes to the property. You may also be required to pay a service charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the house is located on an estate. Your solicitor will report to you on the legal implications.

I am employed by a long established estate agent office in St James where we have experienced a few leasehold sales derailed as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received inconsistent advice from local St James conveyancing firms. Can you confirm whether the owner of a flat can instigate the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that 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 needs to be completed before, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

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 purchaser.

What are your top tips when it comes to appointing a St James conveyancing firm to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

If you are instructing a property lawyer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a St James conveyancing practice) it is most important that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We suggested that you make enquires with two or three firms including non St James conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions could be useful:

• How experienced is the firm with lease extension legislation?

I am the proprietor of a second floor flat in St James. In the absence of agreement between myself and the freeholder, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal make a decision on the sum payable for a lease extension?

Where there is a missing freeholder or if there is disagreement about the premium for a lease extension, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 it is possible to make an application to the LVT to calculate the amount due.

An example of a Lease Extension case for a St James premises is Flats 12A & 19, Evelyn Mansions Carlisle Place in June 2009. The Tribunal held that the price to be paid for the new lease of Flat 12A is £168,824, For the other flat the price was set at £169,110 This case was in relation to 2 flats. The the number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 56 years.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in St James