Stop! Your Lease Extension in Barnehurst Could Be FREE

Many leaseholders in Barnehurst are unaware that their original lawyer had a duty to warn them about future mortgageability and saleability issues. Before you pay thousands to your freeholder, let us audit your purchase history. You might have a claim that pays for your lease extension in full

If you are facing a significant premium because your lease in Barnehurst has dropped toward the 80-year mark, your previous lawyer may be at fault. Our panel of experts specialise in recovering lease extension costs from negligent firms who failed to protect your investment.

Top reasons for Barnehurst lease extension


Why you should start your Barnehurst lease extension today:

Increase your lease and increase your Barnehurst property value

The re-sale value of a leasehold property in Barnehurst is impacted by how many years the lease has remaining. If it is near to or less than eighty years you should anticipate problems on re-sale, so it is recommended to arrange for a lease extension prior to buying. Ideally one should start the process of extending the lease is when the lease still has 82 years unexpired so that a lease extension can be addressed ahead of the 80 year mark. Current legislation enables Barnehurst qualifying lessees to an additional term of 90 years in addition to the existing term, at a notional rent (no ground rent). The reason of the valuation is to arrive at an opinion of the premium payable by the lessee to the freeholder for the purchase of the lease extension.

Barnehurst property with a lease extension has roughly the same value as a freehold

Leasehold residencies in Barnehurst with more than one hundred years remaining on the lease are sometimes regarded as a ‘virtual freehold’. This is where the lease is worth the same as a freehold interest in your home. In such circumstances there is often little to be gained by buying the freehold unless savings on ground rent and estate charges justify it.

Lending institutions may not loan monies on a short lease

Banks and building societies are tightening their criteria and many now expect flats to have a minimum of sixty if not seventy years remaining once the mortgage has expired. Considering plenty of flats in Barnehurst were built in the fifties, sixties and seventies as a result many now require lease extensions if they wish to get a mortgage.

Lender Requirement
Barclays plc Leases with less than 70 years at the commencement of the mortgage are not acceptable.

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;
Barnsley Building Society 60 years from the date of the mortgage application subject to 35 years remaining at the end of the mortgage term.
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.
Halifax Minimum 70 years from the date of the mortgage.
TSB Minimum of 70 years at mortgage commencement, with 30 years remaining at mortgage redemption.

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

Regardless of whether you are a tenant or a landlord in Barnehurst,the lease extension solicitors that we work with will always be prepared to discuss any residential leasehold matters and offer you the benefit of their in-depth market knowledge and the close ties they enjoy with Barnehurst valuers.

Barnehurst Lease Extension Example Cases:

Benjamin, Barnehurst, South East London

In 2014 Benjamin, started to get near to the 80-year threshold with the lease on his two bedroom flat in Barnehurst. In buying his flat 18 years ago, the lease term was of minimal interest. As luck would have it, he realised he needed to take action soon on a lease extension. Benjamin arranged for a lease extension at the eleventh hour last May. Benjamin and the freeholder via the managing agents eventually agreed on sum of £5,000 . If the lease had fallen below 80 years, the premium would have become more exhorbitant by at least £875.

Barnehurst case:

In 2014 we were phoned by Mr V Bertrand who, having purchased a ground floor flat in Barnehurst in June 1997. We are asked if we could approximate the price would be for a ninety year lease extension. Comparative residencies in Barnehurst with 100 year plus lease were in the region of £181,600. The mid-range amount of ground rent was £55 collected quarterly. The lease ran out in 2078. Taking into account 52 years unexpired we calculated the premium to the landlord for the lease extension to be within £30,400 and £35,200 not including legals.

Decision in Bexley

An example of a Lease Extension case for a Barnehurst property is Various @ Colombus Square in January 2012. the Tribunal calculated the premiums to be paid for new leases for each of the flats in Mariners Walk to be £3822 and the premium to be paid for the new lease of 2 Knights Court to be £4439. This case related to 13 flats. The unexpired lease term was 76 years.