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Main reasons to commence your Alresford lease extension


Why you should start your Alresford lease extension today:

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

The closer a domestic lease in Alresford nears to zero years unexpired, the the greater the reduction in the value of the property. Where the lease has, more than 100 years to run then this decrease may be fractional nevertheless there will become a stage when a lease has under than 80 years left as part of the premium you will incur is what is termed as a marriage value. This could increase sharply the cost. It is the main rational as to why you should extend the lease without delay. Many flat owners in Alresford will meet the qualifying criteria; that being said a conveyancing solicitor can confirm whether you are eligible to extend your lease. In certain situations you may not qualify, the most common reason being that you have not been the owner of the property for two years.

An extended lease has roughly the same value as a freehold

Leasehold premises in Alresford with in excess of one hundred years left on the lease are sometimes 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 service charges justify it.

Lenders may not lend on a short lease

Banks and Building Societies are less likely to give a mortgage on a domestic property in Alresford with a short lease. Some lenders simply refuse to lend on leases with less than 75 years left.

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.
National Westminster Bank Mortgage term plus 30 years.
The Mortgage Works Minimum unexpired lease term is 70 years with 30 years remaining at the end of the mortgage term.
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

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 70 years
- 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 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 70 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 1.0% 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
- 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
- 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 reviewed and altered on any review basis or methodology

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 1.0% 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 the 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.

Why use us for your lease extension in Alresford?

The conveyancing solicitors that we work with procure Alresford 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.

Alresford Lease Extension Case Studies:

Morgan, Alresford, Hampshire,

Trailing unsuccessful negotiations with the freeholder of her leasehold flat in Alresford, Morgan commenced the lease extension process just as the lease was coming close to the critical eighty-year deadline. The transaction completed in July 2012. The freeholder’s costs were restricted to a tad over four hundred GBP.

Alresford case:

Mr and Mrs. K François completed a studio apartment in Alresford in July 1997. We are asked if we could estimate the price could be to extend the lease by a further 90 years. Comparable premises in Alresford with 100 year plus lease were worth £205,000. The mid-range amount of ground rent was £50 collected yearly. The lease terminated in 2104. Given that there were 79 years left we estimated the premium to the freeholder to extend the lease to be within £8,600 and £9,800 exclusive of legals.

Alresford case:

Last Spring we were e-mailed by Dr I Scott , who was assigned a lease of a first floor flat in Alresford in October 2003. We are asked if we could shed any light on how much (roughly) premium would likely be to extend the lease by ninety years. Identical homes in Alresford with 100 year plus lease were worth £275,000. The mid-range ground rent payable was £65 collected annually. The lease elapsed on 27 November 2093. Taking into account 68 years left we approximated the compensation to the freeholder for the lease extension to be between £13,300 and £15,400 plus fees.