Stop! Your Lease Extension in Brigg Could Be FREE

Many leaseholders in Brigg 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 Brigg 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.

Main reasons to commence your Brigg lease extension


Top reasons for lease extension now:

A Brigg lease depreciates with the years remaining on the lease.

With a domestic leasehold property in Brigg, you are actually buying a right to reside in a property for a set period of time. These days flat leases typically tend to be for 99 years or 125. Even though this may appear like a lengthy period of time, you may consider extending the lease sooner rather than later. Accepted thinking is that the shorter the lease is the cost of extending the lease increases markedly notably when there are less than eighty years left. Anyone in Brigg with a lease nearing 81 years remaining should seriously consider extending it as soon as possible. When the lease term has below 80 years left, under the current legislation the landlord can calculate and demand a larger premium, based on a technical calculation, known as “marriage value” which is due.

Brigg property with a lease extension is almost the same value as a freehold

Leasehold premises in Brigg with more than 100 years remaining on the lease are sometimes regarded as a ‘virtual freehold’. This is where the lease value the same as a freehold interest in your premises. In such circumstances there is often little upside in purchasing the freehold unless savings on ground rent and maintenance charges justify it.

Lending institutions may decide not to lend with a short lease

Most banks and building societies insist on a lengthy amount of time left on a leasehold property before they will consider it as adequate security. Even if you don't need a mortgage, you should keep in mind that it is reasonable to assume that someone wanting to buy your property in the future might well do, so where they are not able to secure a mortgage, then the value of the property could be adversely impacted. Since 2008 the majority of mortgage lenders have increased the required minimum lease length that they are prepared to lend on

Lender Requirement
Accord Mortgages 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.
Bank of Scotland Minimum 70 years from the date of the mortgage.
Nationwide Building Society - Our minimum unexpired lease term is 55 years, except where lending is over 85% of the purchase price/valuation on a second hand flat, in which case our minimum unexpired term is 90 years.
- There must be at least 30 years remaining at the end of the mortgage term (regardless of the length of lease at the start).

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
- Where lending is over 85% of the purchase price/valuation on a second hand flat and the unexpired lease term on the offer is 90 years or more - only advise us if the actual lease term is less than 90 years.

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 55 years
- Unexpired lease term less than 90 years where we are lending more than 85% of the purchase price/valuation on a second hand flat
- 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 is 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 55 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% 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 (Minimum 90 years where we are lending more than 85% of the purchase price/valuation on a second hand flat)
- 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 (does not apply to Shared Ownership)
- 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 charged which is more than on a peppercorn basis

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% 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 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.
Skipton Building Society 85 years from the date of completion of the mortgage

For Buy to Let cases:
- lettings must not breach any of the lessee’s covenants; and
- consent of the lessor to lettings must be obtained if necessary
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.

Why use us for your lease extension in Brigg?

Lease extensions in Brigg can be a difficult process. We recommend you obtain guidance from a conveyancer and valuer well versed in the legislation and lease extension process.

We provide you with an expert from a selection of lease extension solicitors, which ensures a targeted and efficient service as you have a dedicated port of call with an individual lawyer. Our lease extension solicitors have in-depth market knowledge dealing with Brigg lease extensions and further afield, as well as any potential issues which may arise as well as problems with the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal.

Brigg Lease Extension Case Studies:

Stanley, Brigg, Lincolnshire

Last October Stanley, came seriously close to the 80-year mark with the lease on his first floor flat in Brigg. Having bought his home 19 years ago, the unexpired term was of no bearing. Luckily, he noticed he would imminently be paying an escalated premium for Extending the lease. Stanley arranged for a lease extension at the eleventh hour in January. Stanley and the landlord in the end settled on the final figure of £6,000 . If he failed to meet the deadline, the amount would have gone up by a minimum £1,000.

Brigg case:

Last Summer we were phoned by Mr Nathaniel Wright , who purchased a first floor apartment in Brigg in March 2010. We are asked if we could shed any light on how much (approximately) premium would likely be for a 90 year extension to my lease. Identical properties in Brigg with 100 year plus lease were worth £250,000. The average amount of ground rent was £50 invoiced yearly. The lease expiry date was on 13 April 2096. Considering the 70 years outstanding we approximated the premium to the freeholder for the lease extension to be within £9,500 and £11,000 not including fees.

Brigg case:

Last month we were phoned by Mr and Mrs. B López , who purchased a ground floor apartment in Brigg in January 2006. We are asked if we could approximate the price would be to extend the lease by ninety years. Comparative flats in Brigg with an extended lease were in the region of £246,800. The average ground rent payable was £60 collected monthly. The lease finished in 2076. Taking into account 50 years outstanding we calculated the compensation to the freeholder to extend the lease to be within £44,700 and £51,600 exclusive of professional charges.