Why you should commence your Burnham lease extension

Top reasons for lease extension now:

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

The market value of Burnham leasehold residential property falls as the lease term becomes shorter and this will have an impact on its saleability. The expense of a lease extension can escalate significantly once the unexpired lease term is less than eighty years

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

Leasehold premises in Burnham with over one hundred years unexpired on the lease are sometimes referred to as ‘virtual freehold’. This is where the lease is worth the same as a freehold interest in your property. In such circumstances there is often little upside in purchasing the reversionary interest unless savings on ground rent and maintenance charges warrant it.

Banks and Building Societies may decide not to issue a mortgage on a short lease

The trend since over the last decade has been for lenders to tighten lending requirements generally - this has extended to the property over which the mortgage is to be granted. This has meant the unexpired lease term required by mortgage companies has increased. In the past banks were content with twenty years plus the term of the loan - typically 50 year leases but those requirements are being increasingly undermined by the requirement for longer and longer leases - many use a minimum term of 75 years as a prerequisite.

What makes us experts in Burnham lease extensions?

The lawyers that we work with undertake Burnham 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 conveyancing solicitor we work with provide it.

Burnham Lease Extension Example Cases:

Niamh, Burnham, Buckinghamshire,

Off the back of unsuccessful negotiations with the landlord of her first floor apartment in Burnham, Niamh started the lease extension process as the 80 year mark was rapidly advancing. The lease extension completed in September 2009. The landlord’s charges were kept to an absolute minimum.

Burnham case:

Last Winter we were e-mailed by Mr Eli Bertrand , who was assigned a lease of a purpose-built apartment in Burnham in March 2000. We are asked if we could estimate the price would likely be to extend the lease by a further 90 years. Comparative residencies in Burnham with an extended lease were valued around £275,000. The average ground rent payable was £45 invoiced yearly. The lease expired on 11 November 2095. Given that there were 69 years left we approximated the premium to the freeholder for the lease extension to be between £12,400 and £14,200 plus expenses.

Burnham case:

Ms Danielle Brown bought a garden flat in Burnham in June 2000. We are asked if we could approximate the premium would be for a 90 year extension to my lease. Identical flats in Burnham with 100 year plus lease were worth £216,000. The average ground rent payable was £60 invoiced quarterly. The lease lapsed in 2084. Given that there were 58 years as a residual term we estimated the premium to the freeholder for the lease extension to be between £28,500 and £33,000 exclusive of legals.