Bellingham leases on residential properties are gradually losing value. if your lease has in the region of ninety years unexpired, you should start considering the need for a lease extension. Eighty years is a significant number: when the unexpired term of a lease falls below this level then you start incurring an additional element called marriage value. Leasehold owners in Bellingham will usually be legally entitled to a lease extension; however a solicitor will confirm your eligibility. In some cases you may not qualify. There are prescribed deadlines and procedures to follow once the process has started so it’s sensible to be guided by a conveyancing solicitor during the process.
Leasehold residencies in Bellingham with more than one hundred 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 premises. In such situations there is often little upside in purchasing the reversionary interest unless savings on ground rent and maintenance charges warrant it.
| Lender | Requirement |
|---|---|
| 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. |
| 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. |
| Virgin | 85 years at the time of completion. If it's less, we require it to be extended on or before completion. |
| 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. |
Engaging our service will provide you better control over the value of your Bellingham leasehold, as your property will be more valuable and saleable in respect of lease length should you decide to sell. The lawyers that we work with are well versed in the legislation handling many hundreds of lease extensions or freehold purchase transactions.
Ibrahim owned a high value apartment in Bellingham being sold with a lease of a little over fifty eight years unexpired. Ibrahim on an informal basis contacted his landlord being a well known London-based freehold company for a lease extension. The landlord indicated a willingness to grant an extension taking the lease to 125 years subject to a new rent to start with set at £100 per annum and doubled every 25 years thereafter. No ground rent would be due on a lease extension were Ibrahim to exercise his statutory right. Ibrahim obtained expert advice and was able to make a more informed decision and handle with the matter and ending up with a market value flat.
In 2012 we were e-mailed by Mr and Mrs. A Cooper who, having was assigned a lease of a first floor flat in Bellingham in September 2008. The dilemma was if we could shed any light on how much (roughly) compensation to the landlord could be to extend the lease by ninety years. Comparable homes in Bellingham with an extended lease were in the region of £208,200. The mid-range ground rent payable was £65 billed per annum. The lease termination date was on 2 June 2087. Taking into account 61 years remaining we estimated the compensation to the freeholder to extend the lease to be between £20,000 and £23,000 not including expenses.
An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement decision for a Bellingham flat is 75 Woolstone Road in February 2012. the decision of the Tribunal was that the appropriate amount to be paid to purchase the freehold was the sum of £17,711 . This case affected 2 flats. The number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 68.28 and 158.