Looe leases on residential deteriorating in value. Where your lease has in the region of 90 years left, you should start considering the need for a lease extension. If lease term dips under 80 years, you will then be required to pay half of the property's 'marriage value' in addition to the usual cost of the lease extension to the landlord. Marriage value is the amount of extra value that a lease extension will add to the property. Leasehold owners in Looe will usually qualify for a lease extension; however It would be wise to check with a conveyancing solicitor to confirm your eligibility. In some situations you may not be entitled. There are prescribed deadlines and steps to comply with once the process has commenced so it’s sensible to be guided by a lawyer during the process.
Leasehold premises in Looe with over 100 years outstanding on the lease are often regarded as a ‘virtual freehold’. This is where the lease value the same as a freehold interest in your home. In such situations there is often little upside in purchasing the freehold unless savings on ground rent and maintenance charges justify it.
| Lender | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Chelsea Building Society | 85 years from the date of completion of the mortgage. Please ensure that you explain the implications of a short term lease to the borrower. |
| Godiva Mortgages | A minimum of 70 years unexpired lease at completion for all scheme types apart from Lifetime Mortgages (Equity Release), which require a minimum unexpired term of 80 years at completion. |
| Halifax | 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. |
Retaining our service will provide you enhanced control over the value of your Looe leasehold, as your property will be more valuable and saleable in terms of lease length should you want to sell. The lawyers that we work with have a in-depth market knowledge handling many hundreds of lease extensions or freehold purchase transactions.
Twenty four months ago Ben, came critically near to the 80-year mark with the lease on his one bedroom apartment in Looe. Having bought his property twenty years previously, the lease term was of little relevance. Fortunately, he noticed he needed to take action soon on a lease extension. Ben was able to extend his lease at the eleventh hour last August. Ben and the freeholder via the management company eventually agreed on the final figure of £6,000 . If the lease had dropped lower than eighty years, the amount would have escalated by at least £1,025.
Ms Erin Morgan owned a recently refurbished apartment in Looe in February 2000. We are asked if we could estimate the premium would be for a ninety year extension to my lease. Similar homes in Looe with 100 year plus lease were in the region of £290,000. The mid-range ground rent payable was £45 invoiced monthly. The lease concluded on 14 February 2099. Having 73 years as a residual term we calculated the premium to the landlord to extend the lease to be within £8,600 and £9,800 not including legals.
Ms O Thompson took over the lease of a studio flat in Looe in May 2011. The question was if we could approximate the price could be for a 90 year lease extension. Similar homes in Looe with a long lease were in the region of £240,600. The average amount of ground rent was £65 invoiced every twelve months. The lease concluded on 12 March 2088. Given that there were 62 years unexpired we calculated the compensation to the landlord for the lease extension to be between £21,900 and £25,200 exclusive of costs.