Unfortunately that a Covent Garden residential lease is a wasting asset. The lease value drops in proportion to its lease length. The extent of this is taken for granted in the early years due to the depreciation being disguised by increases in the Covent Garden property prices.Once your lease gets to 85ish years, you should start considering a lease extension. If lease term falls below 80 years, you will end up paying half of the property's 'marriage value' on top of the usual cost of the lease extension to the landlord. The marriage fee is the amount of extra value that a lease extension will add the property The majority of leasehold owners in Covent Garden will be able to extend under the legislation; however a conveyancing solicitor will be able to confirm whether you are eligibility. In some cases you may not be entitled. There are also strict timeframes and procedures to be adhered to once the process has commenced and you will need to be guided by your conveyancing solicitor for the duration of the formalities.
Leasehold residencies in Covent Garden with over one hundred years remaining on the lease are often regarded as a ‘virtual freehold’. This is where the lease value the same as a freehold interest in your home. In such circumstances there is often little to be gained by buying the reversionary interest unless savings on ground rent and service charges merit it.
| Lender | Requirement |
|---|---|
| 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. |
| 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. |
| Godiva Mortgages | 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 remaing from the start of the mortgage. |
| Royal Bank of Scotland | Mortgage term plus 30 years. For a Lifetime Mortgage, the term must be no less than 150 years minus the age of the Borrower. |
Regardless of whether you are a tenant or a landlord in Covent Garden,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 Covent Garden valuers.
Following protracted discussions with the freeholder of her studio apartment in Covent Garden, Katherine initiated the lease extension process as the eighty year threshold was rapidly nearing. The transaction completed in May 2012. The freeholder’s costs were kept to an absolute minimum.
Last month we were e-mailed by Mr and Mrs. F Baker , who moved into a newly refurbished flat in Covent Garden in August 2007. The dilemma was if we could approximate the premium would likely be for a ninety year extension to my lease. Comparable flats in Covent Garden with a long lease were valued about £225,400. The mid-range ground rent payable was £45 collected quarterly. The lease came to a finish on 23 March 2083. Given that there were 64 years outstanding we approximated the compensation to the freeholder to extend the lease to be between £15,200 and £17,600 exclusive of expenses.
An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement case for a Covent Garden premises is 20 Avonwick Road in July 2013. The Tribunal was dealing with an application under Section 26 of the Leasehold Reform Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 for a determination of the freehold value of the property. It was concluded that the price to be paid was Fifteen Thousand Nine Hundred and Seventy (£15,970) divided as to £8,200 for Flat 20 and £7,770 for Flat 20A This case related to 1 flat. The unexpired term was 73.26 years.