Stop! Your Lease Extension in Chinatown Could Be FREE

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Many leaseholders in Chinatown 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 Chinatown 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.

Why you should commence your Chinatown lease extension

Top reasons for lease extension now:

Increase your lease and increase your Chinatown property value

Chances are that where you own a flat in Chinatown you actually own a long leasehold interest over your property

An extended lease is almost the same value as a freehold

Leasehold premises in Chinatown with over one hundred years remaining on the lease are often regarded as a ‘virtual freehold’. This is where the lease is worth the same as a freehold interest in your premises. In such situations there is often little to be gained by buying the freehold unless savings on ground rent and estate charges warrant it.

Mortgage lenders will not lend with a short lease

Almost all mortgage lenders will not grant a mortgage on a lease with less than seventy years left to run - although this varies between mortgage companies. A purchaser will likely encounter difficulties in obtaining a mortgage and this could result in your Chinatown property becoming difficult to dispose of or remortgage.

Lender Requirement
Bank of Scotland Minimum 70 years from the date of the mortgage.
Birmingham Midshires Minimum 70 years from the date of the mortgage.
Chelsea 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.
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.

Why use us for your lease extension in Chinatown?

Irrespective of whether you are a tenant or a landlord in Chinatown,the lease extension lawyers that we work with will always be willing to discuss any residential leasehold matters and offer you the benefit of their in-depth market knowledge and the close ties they enjoy with Chinatown valuers.

Chinatown Lease Extension Case Studies:

Kai, Chinatown, London

Last Autumn Kai, started to get near to the 80-year mark with the lease on his two bedroom apartment in Chinatown. In buying his home 19 years previously, the lease term was of minimal importance. by good luck, he noticed he needed to take action soon on Extending the lease. Kai arranged for a lease extension at the eleventh hour in July. Kai and the freeholder via the managing agents eventually agreed on a premium of £5,500 . If the lease had dropped below 80 years, the amount would have gone up by a minimum £1,025.

Chinatown case:

Mr Ollie Edwards bought a purpose-built flat in Chinatown in July 1997. We are asked if we could approximate the compensation to the landlord would likely be to prolong the lease by an additional years. Identical properties in Chinatown with an extended lease were in the region of £295,000. The mid-range amount of ground rent was £45 collected annually. The lease expired in 2100. Considering the 74 years as a residual term we calculated the compensation to the freeholder to extend the lease to be between £8,600 and £9,800 not including legals.

Decision in Redbridge

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement case for a Chinatown flat is 36 New Wanstead in August 2010. The Tribunal arrived at a valuation of the premium for the freehold of £22,359. This case affected 2 flats. The number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 73.92 years.