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Common questions relating to Biggin Hill leasehold conveyancing

My partner and I may need to sub-let our Biggin Hill ground floor flat temporarily due to a career opportunity. We used a Biggin Hill conveyancing firm in 2003 but they have closed and we did not have the foresight to seek any advice as to whether the lease prohibits the subletting of the flat. How do we find out?

The lease governs the relationship between the landlord and you the flat owner; in particular, it will say if subletting is prohibited, or permitted but only subject to certain conditions. The rule is that if the lease contains no expres ban or restriction, subletting is permitted. Most leases in Biggin Hill do not prevent subletting altogether – such a provision would adversely affect the market value the property. Instead, there is usually a basic requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly sending a duplicate of the tenancy agreement.

There are only Sixty One years left on my flat in Biggin Hill. I now want to get lease extension 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 mean that your lease can be extended by the Court. However, you will be required to prove that you or your lawyers have made all reasonable attempts to track down the landlord. In some cases a specialist may be useful to conduct investigations and prepare an expert document to be accepted by the court as proof that the landlord can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer both on proving the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court covering Biggin Hill.

Planning to complete next month on a ground floor flat in Biggin Hill. Conveyancing lawyers have said that they are sending me a report tomorrow. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Biggin Hill should include some of the following:

  • How long the lease is You should be advised as what happens when the lease expires, and aware of the importance of not letting the lease term falling below eighty years
  • Do you need to have carpet in the flat or are you allowed wood flooring?
  • Are pets allowed in the flat?
  • Whether the lease restricts you from renting out the property, or working from home
  • Repair and maintenance of the flat
  • The landlord’s rights to access the flat you be made aware that your landlord has rights of access and I know how much notice s/he must provide.
  • Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your premises and do you know what it means in practice? For details of the information to be included in your report on your leasehold property in Biggin Hill please ask your solicitor in advance of your conveyancing in Biggin Hill

    • I am employed by a reputable estate agent office in Biggin Hill where we see a few leasehold sales jeopardised as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Biggin Hill conveyancing firms. Could you clarify whether the seller of a flat can commence the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

    As long as the seller has been the owner 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. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser need not have to wait 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done prior to, or at the same time as completion of the sale.

    Alternatively, it may be possible 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.

    Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Biggin Hill with the intention of expediting the sale process?

    • Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Biggin Hill can be reduced where you instruct lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to collate the leasehold information needed by the buyers lawyers.
    • The majority freeholders or Management Companies in Biggin Hill charge for supplying management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should find out the actual amount of the charges. The management information can be applied for as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most frequent reason for frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Biggin Hill.
  • In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s consent? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Biggin Hill leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or addition of wooden flooring require a licence issued by the Landlord approving such alterations. Where you dont have the consents in place you should not communicate with the landlord without contacting your conveyancer before hand.
  • A minority of Biggin Hill leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are able to meet the annual service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their lawyers.
  • If you have had any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are settled before the property is marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where there is a current dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to discharge any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal particulars of the dispute to the buyers, but it is better to reveal the dispute as over as opposed to ongoing.

    • I have given up negotiating a lease extension in Biggin Hill. Can this matter be resolved via the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal?

    in cases where there is a missing landlord or where 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 Leasehold Valuation Tribunal to decide the amount due.

    An example of a Lease Extension case for a Biggin Hill premises is 1 Southlands Court Southlands Road in September 2013. The Leasehold Valuation Tribunal determined that the premium to be paid by the tenant on the grant of a new lease, in accordance with section 56 and Schedule 13 of the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 was £30,541 This case related to 1 flat. The unexpired lease term was 50.57 years.

    Other Topics

    Lease Extensions in Biggin Hill