I wish to sublet my leasehold apartment in Primrose Hill. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask him. Do I need to ask my freeholder for permission?

Even though your previous Primrose Hill conveyancing solicitor is not available you can check your lease to check if you are permitted to let out the property. The rule is that if the lease is non-specific, subletting is permitted. Quite often there is a prerequisite that you are obliged to seek consent via your landlord or other appropriate person before subletting. The net result is you not allowed to sublet without prior permission. Such consent should not be unreasonably turned down. If the lease prohibits you from subletting the property you will need to ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

There are only 72 years unexpired on my flat in Primrose Hill. I am keen to extend my lease but my freeholder is missing. What options are available to me?

On the basis that you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be granted an extra 90 years by the magistrate. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you have done all that could be expected to track down the freeholder. In some cases a specialist may be useful to try and locate and prepare an expert document to be accepted by the court as evidence that the freeholder can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a solicitor both on devolving into the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court overseeing Primrose Hill.

I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that seems to tick a lot of boxes, at a great figure which is making it more attractive. I have since discovered that it's a leasehold as opposed to freehold. I am assuming that there are issues buying a house with a leasehold title in Primrose Hill. Conveyancing advisers have are about to be instructed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Primrose Hill are freehold rather than leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area can help the conveyancing process. We note that you are purchasing in Primrose Hill so you should seriously consider looking for a Primrose Hill conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they have experience in advising on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the unexpired lease term. Being a tenant you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want to the property. The lease will likely included provisions such as obtaining the freeholder’spermission to conduct changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a contribution towards the maintenance of the estate where the property is part of an estate. Your solicitor will advise you fully on all the issues.

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Primrose Hill from the point of view of speeding up the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Primrose Hill can be bypassed where you instruct lawyers as soon as you market your property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers conveyancers.
• The majority landlords or managing agents in Primrose Hill charge for providing management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should find out the actual amount of the charges. The management pack can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus reducing delays. The typical amount of time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most frequent reason for frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Primrose Hill.
• If you have carried out any alterations to the residence would they have required Landlord’s consent? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Primrose Hill state that internal structural changes or laying down wooden flooring calls for a licence issued by the Landlord consenting to such works. Should you dont have the approvals to hand do not contact the landlord without contacting your lawyer before hand.
• Some Primrose Hill leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, it would be prudent to notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. Any bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are able to meet the yearly 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 purchasers or their solicitors.
• If there is a history of conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved prior to the flat being put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be nervous about purchasing a property where a dispute is unresolved. 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 present the dispute as over as opposed to unresolved.

I inherited a garden flat in Primrose Hill. Given that I can not reach agreement with the landlord, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal make a decision on the sum payable for the purchase of the freehold?

Where there is a absentee freeholder or if there is dispute about the premium for a lease extension, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the LVT to decide the amount due.

An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a Primrose Hill property is Flat 2 27 Mackeson Road in December 2012. The Tribunal assessed the value of the lease extension premium at £35,435 and rounded the figure to £35,500 This case related to 1 flat. The remaining number of years on the lease was 64.77 years.

When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Primrose Hill what are the most frequent lease problems?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Primrose Hill. All leases are unique and drafting errors can sometimes mean that certain sections are wrong. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain elements of the property
• Insurance obligations
• A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
• Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

You could encounter difficulties when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Santander, Barnsley Building Society, and Platform Home Loans Ltd all have express conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to grant the mortgage, forcing the purchaser to withdraw.

Primrose Hill Leasehold Conveyancing - Sample of Questions you should ask Prior to Purchasing

Are any of leasehold owners in dispute over their service charge payments? This information is important as a) areas could cause problems in the building as the communal areas may start to deteriorate if repairs are not paid for b) if the leasehold owners have an issue with the managing agents you will wish to know about it