Stop! Your Lease Extension in Dagenham Could Be FREE

Many leaseholders in Dagenham 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 Dagenham 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 start your Dagenham lease extension


Top reasons for lease extension now:

Increase your lease and increase your Dagenham property value

There is no doubt about it a leasehold property in Dagenham is a wasting asset as a result of the diminishing lease term. If the residual term has, beyond 100 years remaining then this decrease may be of little impact however there will become a point in time when a lease has under than 80 years left as part of the premium you will incur is what is known as a marriage value. This could increase sharply the cost. It is the primary rational as to why you should extend the lease sooner as opposed to later. Many flat owners in Dagenham will meet the qualifying criteria; that being said a conveyancing solicitor can confirm if you are eligible for a lease extension. In limited situations you may not qualify, the most common reason being that you have owned the property for less than two years.

An extended lease is almost the same value as a freehold

Leasehold premises in Dagenham with in excess of one hundred years unexpired on the lease are sometimes regarded as a ‘virtual freehold’. This is where the lease value the same as a freehold interest in your home. In such situations there is often little upside in buying the reversionary interest unless savings on ground rent and maintenance charges justify it.

Banks and Building Societies will not lend on a short lease

The propensity since 2008 has been for lenders to tighten lending requirements generally - this has extended to the types of security over which the home loan is to be charged. This has meant the unexpired lease term required by mortgage companies has increased. Historically mortgage companies would grant a mortgage on a lease with 25 years plus the term of the loan - routinely 50 year leases but those requirements have been chipped away by the requirement for longer and longer leases - many use a minimum term of 75 years as standard.

Lender Requirement
Birmingham Midshires Minimum 70 years from the date of the mortgage.
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.
Santander You must report the unexpired lease term to us and await our instructions if:
1. the unexpired term assumed by our valuer is between 55 and 82 years, but the actual unexpired term differs by more than one year (whether longer or shorter); or
2. the unexpired term assumed by our valuer is more than 82 years but the actual unexpired term is less than 82 years; or
3. no valuation report is provided
However, we will not accept a lease where on expiry of the mortgage:
(i) less than 50 years remain and all or part of the loan is repaid on an interest-only basis: or
(ii) less than 30 years remain and the loan is repaid on a capital and interest basis

We will accept a lease that has been extended under the provisions of the Leasehold Reform Act 1993 provided statutory compensation would be available to the leaseholder.
Skipton Building Society 85 years from the date of completion of the mortgage

For Buy to Let cases:
- lettings must not breach any of the lessee’s covenants; and
- consent of the lessor to lettings must be obtained if necessary

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

Retaining our service gives you better control over the value of your Dagenham leasehold, as your property will be more valuable and saleable in terms of lease length should you wish to sell. The lawyers that we work with are well versed in the legislation handling many hundreds of lease extensions or freehold purchase transactions.

Dagenham Lease Extension Example Cases:

Katherine, Dagenham, London,

After unsuccessful discussions with the landlord of her ground floor flat in Dagenham, Katherine started the lease extension process just as the lease was approaching the all-important eighty-year deadline. The transaction was concluded in July 2009. The landlord’s fees were negotiated to under 550 pounds.

Dagenham case:

Mrs G Alexander completed a studio flat in Dagenham in February 1995. We are asked if we could shed any light on how much (roughly) price would be to extend the lease by a further 90 years. Similar residencies in Dagenham with 100 year plus lease were in the region of £275,000. The mid-range ground rent payable was £65 collected per annum. The lease elapsed in 2094. Having 68 years outstanding we calculated the compensation to the freeholder to extend the lease to be within £13,300 and £15,400 not including legals.

Decision in Redbridge

An example of a Lease Extension case for a Dagenham residence is 49 Aldborough Road South in July 2012. The Tribunal decided that the premium payable for the grant of the new lease was £13,925 This case was in relation to 1 flat. The number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 61.36 years.