Stop! Your Lease Extension in Broxbourne Could Be FREE

Many leaseholders in Broxbourne 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 Broxbourne 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 Broxbourne lease extension


Why you should commence your Broxbourne lease extension today:

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

The market value of a leasehold property in Broxbourne depends on how long the lease has left to run. If it is close to or less than 80 years you should envisage difficulties on re-sale, so it is recommended to arrange for a lease extension before purchasing. It is preferable to start the process of extending the lease is when a lease still has 82 years remaining so that all matters can be finalised in advance of the 80 year threshold. Current legislation enables Broxbourne qualifying lessees to a 90 year extension added to their unexpired lease term (ie if your lease has fifty years remaining the statutory lease extension will provide a new term of 140 years). The purpose of the valuation is to determine the sum payable by the lessee to the freeholder for the acquisition of the lease extension.

An extended lease has roughly the same value as a freehold

Leasehold properties in Broxbourne with over 100 years unexpired on the lease are often referred to as ‘virtual freehold’. This is where the lease value the same as a freehold interest in your property. In such situations there is often little to be gained by buying the freehold unless savings on ground rent and service charges justify it.

Lenders will not grant a mortgage with a short lease

Lenders will not lend on short residential leases. You most probably encounter problems where you want to sell your flat in Broxbourne if the unexpired lease term is below the criteria set by the majority of lenders. Different lenders have different requirements but in the main theyrequire an unexpired term of at least seventy years.

Lender Requirement
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.
Leeds Building Society 85 years remaining from the start of the mortgage.
TSB Minimum of 70 years at mortgage commencement, with 30 years remaining at mortgage redemption.
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.
Royal Bank of Scotland Mortgage term plus 30 years.

What makes us experts in Broxbourne lease extensions?

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

Broxbourne Lease Extension Case Studies:

Kai, Broxbourne, Hertfordshire

Last Christmas Kai, came perilously near to the eighty-year mark with the lease on his two bedroom flat in Broxbourne. Having purchased his flat two decades ago, the lease term was of little importance. by good luck, it dawned on him that he would soon be paying an inflated amount for a lease extension. Kai was able to extend his lease just ahead of time last May. Kai and the landlord subsequently settled on an amount of £5,000 . If he failed to meet the deadline, the figure would have gone up by at least £900.

Broxbourne case:

In 2010 we were contacted by Dr Ollie Khan who, having owned a ground floor apartment in Broxbourne in January 2009. The question was if we could approximate the premium would likely be for a ninety year extension to my lease. Comparative residencies in Broxbourne with 100 year plus lease were valued about £254,200. The mid-range ground rent payable was £60 invoiced quarterly. The lease concluded in 2077. Taking into account 51 years outstanding we approximated the premium to the freeholder for the lease extension to be within £43,700 and £50,600 not including legals.

Broxbourne case:

Mr C Roux took over the lease of a one bedroom flat in Broxbourne in August 2001. The question was if we could shed any light on how much (approximately) premium would be to extend the lease by a further 90 years. Comparative residencies in Broxbourne with 100 year plus lease were in the region of £210,600. The average ground rent payable was £45 invoiced per annum. The lease lapsed on 24 August 2088. Given that there were 62 years outstanding we calculated the premium to the freeholder for the lease extension to be within £18,100 and £20,800 plus fees.