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Leasehold conveyancing in East London is more complex than freehold. Your home move will be smoother where you choose a lawyer with a wealth of experience of leasehold conveyancing in East London and across next step up in loc. The lawyers we recommend have been approved by your lender so use our search tool to check.

Frequently asked questions relating to East London leasehold conveyancing

I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in East London. Before I set the wheels in motion I would like to find out the remaining lease term.

If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and most are in East London - then the leasehold title will always include the basic details of the lease, namely the date; the term; and the original parties. From a conveyancing perspective such details then enable any prospective buyer and lender to confirm that any lease they are looking at is the one relevant to that title.For any other purpose, such as confirming how long the term was granted for and calculating what is left, then the register should be sufficient on it's own.

Harry (my fiance) and I may need to sub-let our East London ground floor flat for a while due to a new job. We used a East London conveyancing practice in 2001 but they have closed and we did not have the foresight to get any guidance as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?

A lease governs the relationship between the freeholder and you the leaseholder; specifically, it will indicate if subletting is not allowed, or permitted but only subject to certain conditions. The accepted inference is that if the lease contains no specific ban or restriction, subletting is allowed. Most leases in East London do not prevent an absolute prevention of subletting – such a clause would adversely affect the market value the flat. In most cases there is a basic requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly sending a copy of the tenancy agreement.

Planning to sign contracts shortly on a basement flat in East London. Conveyancing solicitors inform me that they will have a report out to me on Monday. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

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

  • You should receive a copy of the lease
  • Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, landlord
  • Does the lease prevent you from renting out the property, or having a home office for business
  • You should be told what counts as a Nuisance in the lease
  • Ground rent - how much and when you need to pay, and also know whether this will change in the future
  • An explanation as to the provision in the lease to pay service charges - with regard to both the building, and the more general rights a leaseholder has
  • What the implications are if you breach a clause of your lease? For details of the information to be included in your report on your leasehold property in East London please enquire of your solicitor in advance of your conveyancing in East London

    • Last month I purchased a leasehold property in East London. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to my ownership?

    Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee 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. It is an essential part 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).

    What advice can you give us when it comes to appointing a East London conveyancing firm to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

    If you are instructing a conveyancer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a East London conveyancing practice) it is most important that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We recommend that you speak with several firms including non East London conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions could be of use:

    • How experienced is the firm with lease extension legislation?
  • Can they put you in touch with client in East London who can give a testimonial?

    • My wife and I have hit a brick wall in trying to purchase the freehold in East London. Can this matter be resolved via the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal?

    in cases where there is a absentee freeholder or where there is dispute about the premium for a lease extension, under the relevant legislation it is possible to make an application to the LVT to make a decision on the sum to be paid.

    An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement matter before the tribunal for a East London premises is 20 Avonwick Road in July 2013. The Tribunal was dealing with an application under Section 26 of the Leasehold Reform Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 for a determination of the freehold value of the property. It was concluded that the price to be paid was Fifteen Thousand Nine Hundred and Seventy (£15,970) divided as to £8,200 for Flat 20 and £7,770 for Flat 20A This case was in relation to 1 flat. The unexpired lease term was 73.26 years.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in East London