Why you should commence your Colindale lease extension

Main reasons to commence your Colindale lease extension today:

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

Colindale leases on domestic properties are gradually losing value. Where your lease has about 90 years remaining, you should start thinking about a lease extension. An important point to note is that it is desirable for a lease extension to take place before the term of the existing lease falls below eighty years - otherwise a higher premium will be due. Leasehold owners in Colindale will usually be legally entitled to a lease extension; however It would be wise to check with a conveyancing solicitor to confirm your eligibility. In certain cases you may not qualify. There are also strict timetables and steps to comply with once the process has commenced so it’s best to be guided by a conveyancing solicitor during the process.

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

Leasehold properties in Colindale with in excess of 100 years unexpired on the lease are sometimes regarded as a ‘virtual freehold’. This is where the lease is worth 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 estate charges merit it.

Lenders will not finance a property with a short lease

The propensity since the credit crunch has been for banks to tighten lending requirements generally - this has extended to the property over which the home loan is to be charged. This has resulted in the minimum number of years remaining under the lease required by mortgage companies has increased. Historically banks would lend on a lease with 25 years plus the term of the loan - routinely fifty year leases but those requirements evolved by the requirement for longer and longer leases - many now have a minimum term of 75 years as a prerequisite.

Get in touch with one of our Colindale lease extension solicitors or enfranchisement solicitors

The conveyancers that we work with undertake Colindale 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.

Colindale Lease Extension Example Cases:

Toby, Colindale, North London

In recent months Toby, came precariously near to the eighty-year threshold with the lease on his one bedroom apartment in Colindale. In buying his property twenty years ago, the lease term was of no significance. Luckily, he realised he would soon be paying an escalated premium for a lease extension. Toby extended the lease just under the wire last January. Toby and the landlord who owned the flat above subsequently agreed on a premium of £5,000 . If the lease had dropped to less than 80 years, the amount would have escalated by a minimum £1,050.

Colindale case:

Mr and Mrs. T Hill purchased a one bedroom apartment in Colindale in May 2000. We are asked if we could shed any light on how much (approximately) compensation to the landlord could be to prolong the lease by a further 90 years. Comparable premises in Colindale with an extended lease were in the region of £255,000. The average amount of ground rent was £50 billed every twelve months. The lease terminated in 2096. Having 70 years as a residual term we calculated the compensation to the landlord for the lease extension to be between £10,500 and £12,000 not including expenses.