Owning a apartment usually means owning a lease of the property, this is a ‘time-limited’ interest becoming shorter every day. your lease will usually be granted for a fixed period of time , usually 99 or 125 years, although we have seen longer and shorter terms in Bexley. Inevitably, the period of lease left reduces as time goes by. This may pass by relatively unnoticed when the flat or house needs to be sold or re-mortgaged. The shorter the lease the less it is worth and the more expensive it will be to extend the lease. Eligible leaseholders in Bexley have the legal entitlement to extend the lease for an additional ninety years in accordance with statute. Do give careful deliberation before putting off your Bexley lease extension. Holding off the cost now only increases the price you will ultimately have to pay for a lease extension
Leasehold residencies in Bexley with more than one hundred years unexpired on the lease are often referred to as ‘virtual freehold’. This is where the lease is worth the same as a freehold interest in your property. In such circumstances there is often little to be gained by purchasing the freehold unless savings on ground rent and service charges justify it.
| 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; |
| Birmingham Midshires | Minimum 70 years from the date of the mortgage. |
| Halifax | Minimum 70 years from the date of the mortgage. |
| TSB | Minimum of 70 years at mortgage commencement, with 30 years remaining at mortgage redemption. |
Retaining our service gives you increased control over the value of your Bexley leasehold, as your property will be more valuable and saleable in respect of lease length should you wish to sell. The conveyancers that we work with are well versed in the legislation handling many hundreds of lease extensions or freehold purchase transactions.
Teddy owned a 2 bedroom apartment in Bexley on the market with a lease of a little over 61 years remaining. Teddy on an informal basis spoke with his landlord a well known local-based freehold company and enquired on a premium to extend the lease. The freeholder was prepared to give an extension on non-statutory terms taking the lease to 125 years on the basis of a new rent initially set at £100 per annum and increase every 25 years thereafter. No ground rent would be payable on a lease extension were Teddy to invoke his statutory right. Teddy obtained expert legal guidance and secured satisfactory deal informally and ending up with a market value flat.
Mr and Mrs. A Gunderson bought a one bedroom flat in Bexley in February 1999. The dilemma was if we could estimate the compensation to the landlord would likely be to extend the lease by an additional years. Comparative homes in Bexley with 100 year plus lease were worth £285,000. The mid-range ground rent payable was £45 invoiced per annum. The lease concluded in 2096. Given that there were 72 years left we estimated the premium to the landlord to extend the lease to be within £12,400 and £14,200 exclusive of professional charges.
An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Bexley premises is 103a Footscray Road in January 2014. The tribunal determines that the premium payable for the extended lease should be £34,500 according to the expert witness valuation calculation This case related to 1 flat.