Owning a apartment usually means owning a lease of the property, this is a ‘time-limited’ interest becoming shorter every day. The lease will usually be granted for a prescribed period of time , ordinarily 99 or 125 years, although we have seen longer and shorter terms in Leighton Buzzard. Clearly, the term of lease remaining shortens as time goes by. This is often overlooked and only becomes a problem when the residence has to be disposed of or re-mortgaged. The shorter the lease the lower the value of the property and the more expensive it will be to extend the lease. Qualifying leaseholders in Leighton Buzzard have the legal entitlement to extend the lease for an additional 90 years under the 1993 Leasehold Reform Act. You should give due attention before putting off your Leighton Buzzard lease extension. Holding off that expense now likely increases the price you will ultimately incur for a lease extension
Leasehold premises in Leighton Buzzard with in excess of 100 years left 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 premises. In such situations there is often little to be gained by buying the freehold unless savings on ground rent and maintenance charges justify it.
| Lender | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Bank of Scotland | Minimum 70 years from the date of the mortgage. |
| Barnsley Building Society | 60 years from the date of the mortgage application subject to 35 years remaining at the end of the mortgage term. |
| Leeds Building Society | 85 years remaining from the start of the mortgage. |
| TSB | Minimum of 70 years at mortgage commencement, with 30 years remaining at mortgage redemption. |
| Royal Bank of Scotland | Mortgage term plus 30 years. |
The conveyancing solicitors that we work with undertake Leighton Buzzard 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.
In recent months Kian, started to get close to the 80-year mark with the lease on his basement apartment in Leighton Buzzard. In buying his flat two decades ago, the lease term was of little significance. As luck would have it, he recognised he needed to take steps soon on a lease extension. Kian was able to extend his lease at the eleventh hour in July. Kian and the landlord who owned the flat above ultimately agreed on a premium of £5,000 . If the lease had dropped to less than 80 years, the figure would have gone up by a minimum £1,150.
Mrs Yasmin Baker took over the lease of a first floor apartment in Leighton Buzzard in April 2010. We are asked if we could approximate the compensation to the landlord would likely be for a ninety year lease extension. Comparable homes in Leighton Buzzard with an extended lease were in the region of £280,000. The average ground rent payable was £55 invoiced yearly. The lease came to a finish in 2104. Having 78 years left we estimated the compensation to the landlord for the lease extension to be between £13,300 and £15,400 not including legals.
In 2011 we were called by Mrs A Turner who, having acquired a basement apartment in Leighton Buzzard in October 2000. We are asked if we could shed any light on how much (approximately) compensation to the landlord would likely be to prolong the lease by an additional years. Similar flats in Leighton Buzzard with a long lease were worth £191,000. The average ground rent payable was £65 collected quarterly. The lease finished on 15 April 2084. Considering the 58 years as a residual term we calculated the premium to the freeholder for the lease extension to be within £23,800 and £27,400 plus legals.