I would like to let out my leasehold apartment in Westcombe Park. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask her. Do I need to ask my freeholder for their consent?

The lease governs relations between the landlord and you the leaseholder; in particular, it will say if subletting is not allowed, or permitted but only subject to certain caveats. The accepted inference is that if the lease contains no expres ban or restriction, subletting is permitted. Most leases in Westcombe Park do not contain strict prohibition on subletting – 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 supplying a copy of the sublease.

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

Looking forward to exchange soon on a basement flat in Westcombe Park. Conveyancing lawyers have said that they report fully within the next couple of days. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

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

• How long the lease is You should be advised as what happens when the lease ends, and aware of the importance of the 80 year mark
• Will you be prohibited or prevented from having pets in the property?
• Whether your lease has a provision for a reserve fund?
• Changes to the flat (alterations and additions)
• I don't know whether the lease allows me to alter or improve anything in the flat - you should know whether it applies to all alterations or just structural alteration, and whether consent is required
• 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.
• The landlord’s obligations to repair and maintain the building. It is important that you know who is responsible for the repair and maintenance of every part of the building

For details of the information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Westcombe Park please enquire of your lawyer in advance of your conveyancing in Westcombe Park

I have just appointed agents to market my 2 bed apartment in Westcombe Park.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just had a yearly maintenance charge demand – what should I do?

It best that you pay the invoice as normal because all ground rent and service charges will be apportioned on completion, so you will be reimbursed by the buyer for the period running from after the completion date to the next payment date. Most management companies will not acknowledge the buyer until the service charges have been paid and are up to date so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

I am a negotiator for a busy estate agent office in Westcombe Park where we see a number of leasehold sales put at risk due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received conflicting advice from local Westcombe Park conveyancing firms. Could you clarify whether the vendor of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

As long as the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser can avoid having to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or simultaneously with completion of the sale.

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.

All being well we will complete the disposal of our £ 350000 maisonette in Westcombe Park in just under a week. The freeholder has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and previous years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge an administration fee for a flat conveyance in Westcombe Park?

For most leasehold sales in Westcombe Park conveyancing will involve, questions about the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :

• Answering pre-exchange questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Westcombe Park
• Supplying insurance information
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your conveyancer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Westcombe Park leasehold premises is £350. For Westcombe Park 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 supply answers.

I have tried to negotiate informally with with my landlord for a lease extension without success. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal decide on such matters? Can you recommend a Westcombe Park conveyancing firm to represent me?

You certainly can. We are happy to put you in touch with a Westcombe Park conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Westcombe Park residence is 73 Walerand Road in August 2012. the result of the findings of the Tribunal led to a premium to be paid for the extended lease in respect of Flat 73 in the sum of £10,040. The premium applicable in respect of Flat 85 was £5,710. This case was in relation to 2 flats. The the number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 72 years.

I inherited a 1 bedroom flat in Westcombe Park, conveyancing formalities finalised 5 years ago. Can you let me have an estimate of the premium that my landlord can legally expect in return for granting a renewal of my lease? Corresponding properties in Westcombe Park with an extended lease are worth £250,000. The ground rent is £45 yearly. The lease finishes on 21st October 2093

With only 67 years remaining on your lease the likely cost is going to span between £13,300 and £15,400 plus costs.

The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to supply a more accurate figure in the absence of comprehensive investigations. Do not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt other issues that need to be considered and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not take any other action based on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.