Mayfield Lease Extension - Free Consultation

Before you progress with your lease extension in Mayfield
Get a quote from one of our lease extension experts with over 20 years experience.

Let them guide you for FREE on the various options available to you.

It may end up saving you thousands.

Top reasons for Mayfield lease extension


Main reasons to commence your Mayfield lease extension today:

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

The nearer a residential lease in Mayfield nears to zero years unexpired, the the greater the reduction in the value of the property. If the lease has, over one hundred years to run then this decrease may be negligible that being said there will become a point in time when a lease has less than eighty years remaining as part of the premium you will incur is what is termed as a marriage value. This could increase markedly the cost. It is the main rational as to why you should consider extending sooner as opposed to later. The majority of flat owners in Mayfield will meet the qualifying criteria; however a lawyer will be able to confirm whether you qualify for a lease extension. In limited situations you may not qualify, the most frequent reason being that you have owned the property for less than two years.

An extended lease has roughly the same value as a freehold

Leasehold premises in Mayfield with in excess of 100 years remaining 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 buying the reversionary interest unless savings on ground rent and estate charges justify it.

Lending institutions may not grant a mortgage on a short lease

The trend since over the last decade has been for lenders to tighten lending requirements across the board - this has extended to the types of security over which the home loan is to be granted. This has resulted in the minimum number of years remaining under the lease required by lenders has increased. Historically mortgage companies would lend on a lease with twenty years plus the term of the loan - typically fifty year leases but those requirements are being increasingly undermined by the requirement for lengthy leases - many use a minimum term of 75 years as standard.

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.
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.
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
Yorkshire 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.

What makes us experts in Mayfield lease extensions?

The conveyancing solicitors that we work with procure Mayfield 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.

Mayfield Lease Extension Example Cases:

Matthew, Mayfield, East Sussex

Last year Matthew, started to get near to the eighty-year threshold with the lease on his one bedroom apartment in Mayfield. In buying his property two decades ago, the unexpired term was of minimal bearing. Thankfully, he realised he would imminently be paying way over the odds for Extending the lease. Matthew was able to extend his lease at the eleventh hour last April. Matthew and the freeholder subsequently settled on an amount of £5,000 . If he failed to meet the deadline, the sum would have gone up by a minimum £1,075.

Mayfield case:

Last Christmas we were e-mailed by Dr Courtney Wright , who completed a recently refurbished apartment in Mayfield in May 2001. We are asked if we could shed any light on how much (roughly) compensation to the landlord would likely be for a ninety year extension to my lease. Similar properties in Mayfield with an extended lease were valued around £223,400. The mid-range ground rent payable was £60 collected monthly. The lease terminated on 17 February 2083. Given that there were 59 years as a residual term we estimated the compensation to the landlord to extend the lease to be within £27,600 and £31,800 exclusive of legals.

Mayfield case:

Last Spring we were contacted by Mr and Mrs. T Peterson , who completed a ground floor apartment in Mayfield in March 1996. We are asked if we could shed any light on how much (approximately) price would be for a ninety year extension to my lease. Identical properties in Mayfield with a long lease were in the region of £205,000. The mid-range ground rent payable was £50 invoiced monthly. The lease ended on 16 January 2103. Taking into account 79 years outstanding we approximated the premium to the landlord to extend the lease to be between £8,600 and £9,800 not including costs.