Stop! Your Lease Extension in Basildon Could Be FREE

Many leaseholders in Basildon are unaware that their original lawyer had a duty to warn them about future mortgageability and saleability issues. Before you pay thousands to your freeholder, let us audit your purchase history. You might have a claim that pays for your lease extension in full

If you are facing a significant premium because your lease in Basildon has dropped toward the 80-year mark, your previous lawyer may be at fault. Our panel of experts specialise in recovering lease extension costs from negligent firms who failed to protect your investment.

Why you should commence your Basildon lease extension


Main reasons to commence your Basildon lease extension today:

A Basildon leasehold property depreciates with the years remaining on the lease.

The re-sale value of a leasehold property in Basildon is impacted by how long the lease has left to run. If it is near to or fewer than 80 years you should foresee problems on re-sale, so it is recommended to arrange for a lease extension prior to purchasing. Ideally one should start the lease extension process when the lease still has 82 years to run so that formalities can be addressed prior to the eighty year threshold. Current legislation entitles Basildon qualifying lessees to a 90 year extension added to their remaining lease term (ie if your lease has 50 years left the statutory lease extension will provide a new term of 140 years). The reason of the valuation is to determine the amount payable by the lessee to the freeholder for the acquisition of the lease extension.

An extended lease has roughly the same value as a freehold

It is generally accepted that a property with more than 100 years unexpired lease term is worth approximately the equivalent as a freehold. Where an additional 90 years added to all but the shortest lease, the property will be worth the same as a freehold for decades to come.

Lending institutions may not loan monies with a short lease

Mortgage lenders are less likely to give a mortgage on a domestic flat in Basildon with a short lease. Some lenders simply refuse to lend on leases with under 75 years left.

Lender Requirement
Bank of Scotland Minimum 70 years from the date of the mortgage.
Barclays plc Leases with less than 70 years at the commencement of the mortgage should be declined (see exception below).

Leases with greater than 70 years but fewer than 85 years remaining must be referred to issuing office.

Leases with fewer than 70 years should only be referred to the issuing office where the following scenario applies, as discretion may be applied subject to bank approval:

• Property is located in any of the following prestigious developments: Cadogan, Crown, Grosvenor, Howard de Walden, Portman or Wellcome Trust Estates in Central London AND
• The value of the property subject to the short remaining term is £500,000 or more AND
• The loan to value does not exceed 90% for purchases, 90% like for like re-mortgages, 80% for re-mortgages with any element of capital raising and 80% for existing Barclays mortgage borrowers applying for additional borrowing;
Lloyds TSB Scotland Minimum 70 years from the date of the mortgage.
Nationwide Building Society - Our minimum unexpired lease term is 55 years, except where lending is over 85% of the purchase price/valuation on a second hand flat, in which case our minimum unexpired term is 90 years.
- There must be at least 30 years remaining at the end of the mortgage term (regardless of the length of lease at the start).

Where the unexpired lease term is different to that recorded on the mortgage offer, the following clarifies if we need to be informed:

Second hand property:
- If the unexpired lease term on the offer is 85 years or more - only advise us if the actual lease term is less than 85 years
- if the unexpired lease term on the offer is less than 85 years – advise us if the actual lease term is different than reported
- For equity share applications - advise us if the actual lease term is different than reported on the offer
- Where lending is over 85% of the purchase price/valuation on a second hand flat and the unexpired lease term on the offer is 90 years or more - only advise us if the actual lease term is less than 90 years.

New build property:
- If the unexpired lease term stated on the offer is 125 years (flat) / 250 years (house) or more - only advise us if the actual lease term is less than 125 years (flat) / 250 years (house)
- For equity share applications - always advise us if the actual lease term is different than reported on the offer

Lease terms such as ground rent and event fees must be reasonable at all times during the term of the lease and adhere to our requirements below. If you’re unsure as to whether the terms of a lease are unreasonable or onerous, please refer the details to us in plain English for Valuer consideration. If the potentially onerous terms are in relation to the ground rent please include the current ground rent figure per annum, how often it will be reviewed and the price structure it will be reviewed against. See the guidance below.

SECOND HAND PROPERTIES

Unacceptable - advise Issuing Office (Will be declined):
- Unexpired lease term less than 55 years
- Unexpired lease term less than 90 years where we are lending more than 85% of the purchase price/valuation on a second hand flat
- Less than 30 years remaining at the end of the mortgage term
- Ground Rent greater than 0.5% of the property value
- Ground Rent doubles less than every 20 years (e.g. doubles every 5, 10 or 15 years) - acceptable if doubles every 20 years or more
- Ground Rent is compounded RPI
- Ground Rent review period is less than or equal to 5 years

Refer to Issuing Office (Valuer will consider any impact on valuation figure and marketability):
- Unexpired lease term is 55 to 85 years
- Ground Rent greater than 0.1% and less than or equal to 0.5% of the property value
- Ground Rent escalation is linked to any indices greater than RPI
- Ground Rent escalation is linked to the value of the building*
- Ground Rent review period is greater than 5 and less than 10 years
- Event clauses exist for normal use e.g. changing the carpet, installing a TV aerial, etc
- Estate Rent Charges greater than £500 p/a (please provide details of what the charges cover)
- Service Charges greater than 1% of property value p/a (please provide details of what the charges cover)
- Anything that appears onerous, unusual or out of the ordinary

Acceptable (no requirement to advise Issuing Office):
- Unexpired lease term greater than 85 years (Minimum 90 years where we are lending more than 85% of the purchase price/valuation on a second hand flat)
- Ground Rent less than or equal to 0.1% of the property value
- Ground Rent review period greater than or equal to 10 years
- Ground Rent escalation less than or equal to RPI

NEW BUILD PROPERTIES (includes office conversions)

Unacceptable - advise Issuing Office (Will be declined)
- Unexpired lease term less than 125 years on a new build flat or less than 250 years on a new build house (does not apply to Shared Ownership)
- Any lease which is subject to a Ground Rent (or Annual Rent) being charged which is more than on a peppercorn basis
- Any lease which is subject to a Ground Rent (or Annual Rent) being charged which is more than on a peppercorn basis

Refer to Issuing Office (Valuer will consider any impact on valuation figure and marketability):
- Event clauses exist for normal use e.g. changing the carpet, installing a TV aerial etc
- Estate Rent Charges greater than £500 p/a (please provide details of what the charges cover)
- Service Charges greater than 1% of property value p/a (please provide details of what the charges cover)
- Anything else appears onerous, unusual or out of the ordinary

Acceptable (no requirement to advise Issuing Office):
- Unexpired lease term greater than or equal to 125 years on a new build flat or greater than or equal to 250 years on a new build house
- A lease subject to a peppercorn Ground Rent (Annual Rent) charges

For the avoidance of doubt, any New Build properties completed but not sold pre-30 June 2022 will only be acceptable if the Lease conforms to the above guidance.

* Where the Ground Rent escalation is linked to the value of the building, please provide the following:
- How is the value of the block/unit currently calculated and if the assessment relates to the block(s), how is the Ground Rent calculated/apportioned per property?
- The current valuation and Ground Rent for each unit
- What is the mechanism for future valuations of the block and how is the Ground Rent calculated/apportioned?
- What is the right of appeal? And is this a documented process within the lease?
- Who bears the cost of the valuation (and appeal) process?
- Confirmation the review period is not less than twenty years.

Lease Extensions

We require all Lease Extensions to be completed under the Leasehold Reform Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 and to meet the above criteria as a minimum. Where you become aware that it does not meet these requirements, please refer to Issuing Office.

Please ensure that all lender enquiries are submitted (with full documentation/requirements) at least 2 weeks prior to exchange to allow sufficient time for review and decisioning.
TSB Minimum of 70 years at mortgage commencement, with 30 years remaining at mortgage redemption.

Why use us for your lease extension in Basildon?

Engaging our service gives you increased control over the value of your Basildon leasehold, as your property will be more valuable and marketable in terms of lease length should you want to sell. The conveyancing solicitors that we work with are well versed in the legislation handling many hundreds of lease extensions or freehold purchase transactions.

Basildon Lease Extension Example Cases:

Noah, Basildon, Essex,

Noah was the the leasehold owner of a high value flat in Basildon on the market with a lease of fraction over sixty years unexpired. Noah informally contacted his freeholder a well known local-based freehold company and enquired on a premium to extend the lease. The freeholder was keen to agree an extension on non-statutory terms taking the lease to 125 years on the basis of a rise in the rent to £50 yearly. Ordinarily, ground rent would not be payable on a lease extension were Noah to exercise his statutory right. Noah obtained expert legal guidance and secured an acceptable resolution without resorting to tribunal and sell the property.

Basildon case:

Mr Henry Harris owned a one bedroom apartment in Basildon in May 2002. The question was if we could approximate the premium could be to prolong the lease by ninety years. Comparable residencies in Basildon with 100 year plus lease were in the region of £300,000. The mid-range amount of ground rent was £50 billed quarterly. The lease ended on 22 April 2102. Having 76 years outstanding we calculated the compensation to the landlord for the lease extension to be between £8,600 and £9,800 exclusive of costs.

Basildon case:

Last Spring we were e-mailed by Mr and Mrs. M González , who was assigned a lease of a ground floor apartment in Basildon in April 2010. We are asked if we could estimate the premium would likely be for a 90 year extension to my lease. Comparable properties in Basildon with 100 year plus lease were in the region of £257,800. The mid-range amount of ground rent was £65 collected quarterly. The lease expired on 17 July 2091. Having 65 years outstanding we calculated the premium to the landlord to extend the lease to be within £18,100 and £20,800 exclusive of expenses.