freeholder's silence: how long before consent is deemed 'granted'?

pigeonpie

The freeholder here has now gone 2 months without replying to our Licence requests (eg to put in a window) and Deed of Variation (to confirm garden will stay communal as lease is silent on tenants' rights to the garden). We have heard from the vendor that the matter is 'with the freeholder's solicitor'. We keep paying rent until such time as the replies come through and we finally decide to buy or not.

We've thought that we will say that we will take December's rent off the completion amount if we go ahead (London rents: high) as otherwise just keep paying more and more for the flat, as are buying from the owner.But we don't want to do anything that erodes our rights as tenants if anything breaks (like the boiler!). We have paid Dec rent.

I heard that if a freeholder takes longer than 28 days to reply that you can claim that consent is deemed to have been granted and wondered if anyone knew if that was true (a court judgement?), automatic or if you have to go to court to enforce it (not possible). Our solicitor won't give an opinion, says we have to ask her litigation colleague as she just 'does conveyancing' :rolleyes:

Sorry to rant but am going nuts!

Alan_M_2

Put a rocket up your solicitor for being a jobsworth.

She can ask her collegue on your behalf, that's just plain common courtesy, oooh people like this really wind me up:wall:

silvercar

don't know about taking freeholder's consent for granted.

on the subject of rent, you will be liable to pay rent until completion day. After all if the landlord has a mortgage on the flat, this will need paying until the landlord is able to pay your money over. Imagine you were moving elsewhere, the landlord would still expect to be paid until you tenancy ends.

I doubt your solicitor will allow you to take anything off the completion amount, certainly without the seller's agreement.

pigeonpie

Thanks guys. Our year was up a month ago but the lease is just rolling forward.We were ready to complete then, everything in place, but the freeholder's silence has slowed it down to a halt. Plus the vendor took off abroad and clearly hasn't chased him (having first insisted we complete in November), so it's not our fault and a good deal of his (the vendor) that we are still waiting for replies - which may never come. That's why we are trying to put vendor under pressure to come up with all the missing info - he knows the freeholder quite well. Sold the freehold to him a year ago.
Sorry to rant but going mad - yes, the whole lot wind me up Alan!!!!
Btw it's not true that tea calms stress.....