Main reasons to start your Eltham lease extension

Why you should commence your Eltham lease extension today:

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

With a residential leasehold premises in Eltham, you are actually buying a right to live in a property for a prescribed time frame. In recent years flat leases are usually granted for 99 years or 125. Many leasehold owners are unconcerned as this seems like a long period of time, you should think about extending the lease sooner rather than later. Accepted thinking is that the shorter the lease is the cost of extending the lease increases markedly particularly once there are less than 80 years remaining. Residents in Eltham with a lease approaching 81 years left should seriously consider extending it without delay. Once the lease term has under eighty years outstanding, under the relevant legislation the freeholder can calculate and demand a greater premium, assessed on a technical computation, known as “marriage value” which is due.

An extended lease has roughly the same value as a freehold

Leasehold residencies in Eltham with more than 100 years remaining on the lease are sometimes regarded as a ‘virtual freehold’. This is where the lease is worth the same as a freehold interest in your premises. In such situations there is often little to be gained by purchasing the reversionary interest unless savings on ground rent and maintenance charges justify it.

Lenders will not grant a mortgage on a short lease

Whether or not the lease is be regarded as a short lease depends on the specific mortgage company, yet lending institutions start to get concerned at around 75 years. This may be problematic when you come to market or refinance your property as it will be effectively unmortgageable. Even though you might not have an immediate plan to sell but when you do your buyer must wait two years before they can initiate the legal procedures for an extension to the lease.

What makes us experts in Eltham lease extensions?

The conveyancers that we work with undertake Eltham lease extensions and help protect your position. A lease extension can be arranged to be completed to coincide with a change of ownership so the costs of the lease extension are paid for using part of the sale proceeds. You really do need expert legal advice in this difficult and technical area of law. The conveyancer we work with provide it.

Eltham Lease Extension Example Cases:

Liam, Eltham, South East London

Last year Liam, came dangerously close to the eighty-year threshold with the lease on his two bedroom apartment in Eltham. In buying his flat two decades ago, the length of the lease was of minimal relevance. Fortunately, he realised he would imminently be paying an inflated amount for a lease extension. Liam arranged for a lease extension just ahead of time in April. Liam and the landlord who owned the flat above subsequently agreed on the final figure of £6,000 . If he failed to meet the deadline, the price would have become more exhorbitant by a minimum £875.

Eltham case:

In 2014 we were called by Ms Yasmin Martínez who, having purchased a studio apartment in Eltham in October 1996. The dilemma was if we could estimate the compensation to the landlord would be for a 90 year lease extension. Comparable residencies in Eltham with a long lease were worth £210,000. The average ground rent payable was £50 collected yearly. The lease elapsed in 2106. Taking into account 80 years outstanding we approximated the compensation to the freeholder to extend the lease to be within £8,600 and £9,800 exclusive of expenses.