I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in East Bedfont. Before I get started I would like to find out the number of years remaining on the lease.

Assuming the lease is recorded at the land registry - and most are in East Bedfont - then the leasehold title will always include the short particulars 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.

Frank (my husband) and I may need to rent out our East Bedfont basement flat for a while due to a career opportunity. We instructed a East Bedfont conveyancing practice in 2002 but they have closed and we did not think at the time get any advice as to whether the lease permits subletting. How do we find out?

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

I've recently bought a leasehold property in East Bedfont. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

In a situation 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. Strange as it may seem, 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).

I am a negotiator for a busy estate agent office in East Bedfont where we see a few leasehold sales derailed due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received contradictory information from local East Bedfont conveyancing solicitors. Can you shed some light as to whether the vendor of a flat can initiate the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that the seller has been the owner 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. The benefit of this is 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 before, or simultaneously with 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.

We expect to complete our sale of a £475000 maisonette in East Bedfont on Friday in a week. The managing agents has quoted £408 for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and previous years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge an administration fee for a flat conveyance in East Bedfont?

East Bedfont conveyancing on leasehold apartments more often than not necessitates the purchaser’s lawyer sending enquiries for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to address such questions the majority will be willing to assist. They may levy a reasonable administration fee for answering questions or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average costs for the information that you are referring to is £350, in some transactions it is above £800. The management information fee demanded by the landlord must be accompanied by a synopsis of rights and obligations in respect of administration fees, without which the invoice is technically not due. In reality you have little option but to pay whatever is demanded should you wish to exchange contracts with the buyer.

I have had difficulty in trying to purchase the freehold in East Bedfont. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal adjudicate on premiums?

in cases where there is a missing landlord 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 calculate the sum to be paid.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a East Bedfont premises 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 remaining number of years on the lease was 82.93 years.