St Ives leases on residential properties are gradually decreasing in value. The shorter the remaining lease term becomes, the less it is worth – and accordingly any extension of your lease becomes more expensive. Legislation has been in place for sometime now allowing qualifying St Ives residential leaseholders to extend the terms of long leases. Where you are a leasehold owner in St Ives you really ought to see if your lease has between 70 and ninety years left. In particular once the remaining lease term slips under eighty years, the compensation to the landlord for any lease extension sharply increases as an element of the premium you will incur is what is known as a marriage value
It is generally accepted that a residential leasehold with in excess of 100 years remaining is worth roughly 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 ahead.
| Lender | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Barclays plc | Leases with less than 70 years at the commencement of the mortgage should be declined (see exception below). 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; |
| Coventry Building Society | 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. |
| 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. |
| Leeds Building Society | 85 years remaining from the start of the mortgage. |
The conveyancers that we work with procure St Ives 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.
Trailing protracted discussions with the freeholder of her garden apartment in St Ives, Amelia initiated the lease extension process as the 80 year threshold was fast nearing. The transaction was finalised in January 2013. The freeholder’s costs were kept to an absolute minimum.
In 2011 we were contacted by Mr Jasper López who, having purchased a recently refurbished apartment in St Ives in September 2005. The question was if we could estimate the premium would likely be for a ninety year lease extension. Identical residencies in St Ives with 100 year plus lease were in the region of £210,600. The mid-range amount of ground rent was £45 collected per annum. The lease came to a finish in 2088. Given that there were 62 years as a residual term we approximated the premium to the landlord to extend the lease to be within £18,100 and £20,800 exclusive of legals.
Last Spring we were called by Mr Arthur Nelson , who completed a first floor flat in St Ives in November 1996. We are asked if we could shed any light on how much (roughly) premium would likely be to prolong the lease by ninety years. Similar flats in St Ives with 100 year plus lease were in the region of £265,000. The average ground rent payable was £50 billed quarterly. The lease ended in 2099. Taking into account 73 years unexpired we approximated the compensation to the landlord for the lease extension to be between £9,500 and £11,000 not including fees.