With a long leasehold property in Harmondsworth, you are in fact renting it for a certain period of time. These days flat leases are usually granted for 99 years or 125. Even though this may appear like a long period of time, you should consider extending the lease sooner as opposed to later. Accepted thinking is that the shorter the lease is the cost of extending the lease becomes disproportionately greater especially when there are less than eighty years remaining. Leasehold owners in Harmondsworth with a lease drawing near to 81 years left should seriously think of extending it sooner as opposed to later. Once a lease has less than eighty years remaining, under the relevant legislation the freeholder is entitled to calculate and charge a greater amount, based on a technical computation, strangely termed as “marriage value” which is due.
It is conventional wisdom that a residential leasehold with over one hundred years remaining is worth approximately the equivalent as a freehold. Where an further 90 years added to all but the shortest lease, the property will be equivalent in value to a freehold for many years in the future.
| Lender | Requirement |
|---|---|
| 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; |
| Barnsley Building Society | 60 years from the date of the mortgage application subject to 35 years remaining at the end of the mortgage term. |
| Halifax | Minimum 70 years from the date of the mortgage. |
| Lloyds TSB Scotland | Minimum 70 years from the date of the mortgage. |
| Skipton Building Society | 85 years from the date of completion of the mortgage For Buy to Let cases: - lettings must not breach any of the lessee’s covenants; and - consent of the lessor to lettings must be obtained if necessary |
The lawyers that we work with handle Harmondsworth 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 lawyer we work with provide it.
Ibrahim owned a conversion apartment in Harmondsworth being sold with a lease of a little over fifty eight years outstanding. Ibrahim on an informal basis contacted his landlord being a well known London-based freehold company for a lease extension. The landlord was keen to grant an extension on non-statutory terms taking the lease to 125 years subject to a rise in the rent to £100 yearly. No ground rent would be due on a lease extension were Ibrahim to exercise his statutory right. Ibrahim procured expert legal guidance and secured an acceptable deal without resorting to tribunal and sell the flat.
In 2011 we were phoned by Mr James Adams who, having purchased a purpose-built flat in Harmondsworth in July 2010. We are asked if we could approximate the price could be to extend the lease by 90 years. Comparable premises in Harmondsworth with a long lease were in the region of £201,200. The mid-range ground rent payable was £55 invoiced yearly. The lease elapsed in 2081. Having 56 years as a residual term we estimated the compensation to the freeholder to extend the lease to be within £31,400 and £36,200 plus expenses.
An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement decision for a Harmondsworth property is 164 Nestles Avenue in October 2013. The tribunal agreed with the proposed price of £20,158 for the freehold and determined that that sum is the amount to be paid into court This case was in relation to 2 flats. The unexpired residue of the current lease was 69 years.