Newton Abbot Lease Extension - Free Consultation

Before you progress with your lease extension in Newton Abbot
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 Newton Abbot lease extension


Why you should start your Newton Abbot lease extension today:

Increase your lease and increase your Newton Abbot property value

The market value of a leasehold property in Newton Abbot depends on how many years the lease has remaining. If it is near to or fewer than eighty years you should anticipate problems on re-sale, so it is recommended to arrange for a lease extension prior to purchasing. It is preferable to commence the process of extending the lease is when a lease still has 82 years unexpired so that a lease extension can be finalised ahead of the eighty year threshold. Current legislation enables Newton Abbot qualifying lessees to a ninety year extension added to their residual lease term (ie if your lease has fifty years left the statutory lease extension will provide a new term of 140 years). The purpose of the valuation is to arrive at an opinion of the sum payable by the lessee to the freeholder for the purchase of the lease extension.

An extended lease has roughly the same value as a freehold

It is generally considered that a property with over one hundred years unexpired lease term is worth roughly the equivalent as a freehold. Where an further ninety years added to all but the shortest lease, the premises will be worth the same as a freehold for decades to come.

Mortgage lenders may decide not to lend with a short lease

Lenders do not like short residential leases. You most probably experience difficulties where you wish to sell your flat in Newton Abbot if the remaining lease term is below the criteria set by the majority of banks and building societies. Different lenders have different criteria but on the whole theyrequire an unexpired term of at least 65 years.

Lender Requirement
Accord Mortgages 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.
Bank of Scotland Minimum 70 years from the date of the mortgage.
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;
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.
Santander You must report the unexpired lease term to us and await our instructions if:
1. the unexpired term assumed by our valuer is between 55 and 82 years, but the actual unexpired term differs by more than one year (whether longer or shorter); or
2. the unexpired term assumed by our valuer is more than 82 years but the actual unexpired term is less than 82 years; or
3. no valuation report is provided
However, we will not accept a lease where on expiry of the mortgage:
(i) less than 50 years remain and all or part of the loan is repaid on an interest-only basis: or
(ii) less than 30 years remain and the loan is repaid on a capital and interest basis

We will accept a lease that has been extended under the provisions of the Leasehold Reform Act 1993 provided statutory compensation would be available to the leaseholder.

Get in touch with one of our Newton Abbot lease extension solicitors or enfranchisement solicitors

The conveyancers that we work with handle Newton Abbot 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 conveyancing solicitor we work with provide it.

Newton Abbot Lease Extension Case Summaries:

Liam, Newton Abbot, Devon,

Liam owned a studio flat in Newton Abbot on the market with a lease of fraction over fifty eight years remaining. Liam informally approached his freeholder a well known London-based freehold company and enquired on a premium to extend the lease. The landlord was keen to grant an extension on non-statutory terms taking the lease to 125 years subject to a new rent initially set at £100 per annum and doubled every 25 years thereafter. Ordinarily, ground rent would not be payable on a lease extension were Liam to exercise his statutory right. Liam obtained expert advice and was able to make an informed decision and handle with the matter and readily saleable.

Newton Abbot case:

In 2009 we were e-mailed by Ms Imogen Gray who, having bought a garden flat in Newton Abbot in January 2009. The question was if we could shed any light on how much (approximately) compensation to the landlord could be for a ninety year extension to my lease. Comparable flats in Newton Abbot with 100 year plus lease were valued around £280,000. The average amount of ground rent was £55 collected quarterly. The lease terminated on 5 August 2103. Taking into account 78 years as a residual term we approximated the compensation to the freeholder for the lease extension to be between £13,300 and £15,400 exclusive of costs.

Newton Abbot case:

In 2012 we were phoned by Mr and Mrs. S Vincent who, having purchased a newly refurbished apartment in Newton Abbot in January 1997. We are asked if we could shed any light on how much (roughly) premium would be to extend the lease by an additional years. Comparable residencies in Newton Abbot with an extended lease were worth £191,000. The mid-range ground rent payable was £65 collected every twelve months. The lease expired on 13 July 2083. Taking into account 58 years remaining we estimated the compensation to the landlord to extend the lease to be between £23,800 and £27,400 exclusive of expenses.