When it comes to long leasehold premises in Blackfriars, you are actually buying a right to live in a property for a set period of time. Modern flat leases are usually granted for 99 years or 125. Many leasehold owners become complacent as this seems like a lengthy period of time, you may consider a lease extension sooner rather than later. The general rule is that the shorter the lease is the cost of extending the lease increases markedly especially once there are less than 80 years remaining. Residents in Blackfriars with a lease approaching 81 years remaining should seriously consider extending it without delay. Once a lease has below 80 years left, under the current legislation the landlord is entitled to calculate and charge a greater premium, based on a technical multiplication, strangely termed as “marriage value” which is payable.
Leasehold premises in Blackfriars with more than 100 years remaining on the lease are sometimes referred to as ‘virtual freehold’. This is where the lease value the same as a freehold interest in your property. In such circumstances there is often little upside in buying the reversionary interest unless savings on ground rent and service charges merit it.
| Lender | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Birmingham Midshires | Minimum 70 years from the date of the mortgage. |
| 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. |
| Leeds Building Society | 85 years remaining from the start 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. |
The lawyers that we work with undertake Blackfriars 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 lawyer we work with provide it.
Trailing unsuccessful negotiations with the landlord of her one bedroom apartment in Blackfriars, Georgia commenced the lease extension process as the eighty year mark was rapidly nearing. The lease extension was concluded in January 2015. The freeholder’s costs were kept to an absolute minimum.
In 2012 we were e-mailed by Dr Alfie Bernard who, having owned a ground floor apartment in Blackfriars in February 2002. The dilemma was if we could shed any light on how much (roughly) premium could be to extend the lease by ninety years. Comparable homes in Blackfriars with an extended lease were in the region of £270,000. The mid-range amount of ground rent was £55 collected per annum. The lease ended on 12 October 2100. Considering the 75 years as a residual term we calculated the premium to the landlord to extend the lease to be between £9,500 and £11,000 plus fees.
An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Blackfriars property is Flat 89 Trinity Court Grays Inn Road in February 2013. the Tribunal found that the premium to be paid by the tenant on the grant of a new lease, in accordance with section 56 and Schedule 13 to the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 should be £36,229. This case was in relation to 1 flat. The remaining number of years on the lease was 66.8 years.