I am intending to let out my leasehold apartment in Perivale. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask him. Is permission from the freeholder required?

Even though your previous Perivale conveyancing lawyer is no longer around you can review your lease to see if it allows you to sublet the apartment. The accepted inference is that if the deeds are non-specific, subletting is permitted. There may be a precondition that you need to seek permission via your landlord or other appropriate person in advance of subletting. This means you not allowed to sublet without prior permission. The consent is not allowed to be unreasonably refused ore delayed. If the lease prohibits you from subletting the property you should ask your landlord for their consent.

You should [be sent a copy of the lease|receive a copy of the lease]

Planning to exchange soon on a ground floor flat in Perivale. Conveyancing lawyers inform me that they will have a report out to me within the next couple of days. What should I be looking out for?

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

• The unexpired lease term You should be advised as what happens when the lease ends, and informed of the importance of the 80 year mark
• Defining your rights in respect of the communal areas in the building.For example, does the lease provide for a right of way over a path or staircase?
• Are you allowed to have a pet in the flat?
• Changes to the flat (alterations and additions)
• 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 a comprehensive list of information to be included in your report on your leasehold property in Perivale please enquire of your conveyancer in advance of your conveyancing in Perivale

I've found a house that seems to meet my requirements, at a great figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have just discovered that the title is leasehold as opposed to freehold. I am assuming that there are particular concerns buying a leasehold house in Perivale. Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed. Will my lawyers set out the risks of buying a leasehold house in Perivale ?

Most houses in Perivale are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area can help the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are buying in Perivale in which case you should be shopping around for a Perivale conveyancing solicitor and check that they have experience in advising on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the unexpired lease term. Being a lessee you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions for example obtaining the landlord’spermission to carry out alterations. You may also be required to pay a maintenance charge towards the upkeep of the communal areas where the property is part of an estate. Your solicitor should appraise you on the various issues.

I am a negotiator for a long established estate agent office in Perivale where we have witnessed a few leasehold sales derailed as a result of short leases. I have received contradictory information from local Perivale conveyancing firms. Please can you shed some light as to whether the seller of a flat can initiate the lease extension formalities 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. This means that the proposed purchaser can avoid having 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.

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 buyer.

Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on the disposal of our £ 225000 apartment in Perivale next week. The managing agents has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and 3 years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in Perivale?

Perivale conveyancing on leasehold apartments normally necessitates fees being levied by managing agents :

• Addressing pre-contract enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in Perivale
• Copies of the building insurance and schedule
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your solicitor will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Perivale leasehold property is £350. For Perivale conveyancing transactions it is customary for the seller to pay for these costs. The landlord or their agents are under no legal obligation to answer such questions most will be willing to do so - albeit often at exorbitant prices where the fees bear little relation to the work involved. Unfortunately there is no law that requires fixed charges for administrative tasks. Neither is there any legal time frame by which they are required to provide the information.

I have attempted and failed to negotiate with my landlord to extend my lease without getting anywhere. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal adjudicate on such matters? Can you recommend a Perivale conveyancing firm to act on my behalf?

Where there is a missing freeholder or if there is dispute about what the lease extension should cost, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 it is possible to make an application to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) to judgment on the price.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Perivale premises is Ground Floor Flat 79 London Road in September 2012. the Tribunal held that the premium payable for the lease extension should be £7,636 This case affected 1 flat. The unexpired lease term was 74 years.

Perivale Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - A selection of Questions you should ask Prior to buying

You should want to discover as much as you can concerning the managing agents as they will affect your use and enjoyment of the property. As the proprietor of a leasehold property you will be in the clutches of the managing agents from a financial perspective and when it comes to practical issues such as the cleanliness of the communal areas. Enquire of other people what they think of their management. On a final note, find out the dates that you are obliged pay the service charge to the relevant party and precisely what it includes.