When it comes to residential leasehold property in Dartford, you are in fact renting it for a certain period of time. Modern flat leases are usually granted for 99 years or 125. Even though this may appear like a lengthy period of time, you may think about extending the lease sooner rather than later. Accepted thinking is that the shorter the number of years is the cost of extending the lease gets disproportionately more expensive particularly once there are fewer than 80 years left. Leasehold owners in Dartford with a lease nearing 81 years left should seriously think of extending it sooner as opposed to later. Once a lease has fewer than 80 years outstanding, under the relevant legislation the freeholder can calculate and demand a greater amount, based on a technical calculation, known as “marriage value” which is due.
It is conventional wisdom that a property with more than 100 years unexpired lease term is worth roughly the same as a freehold. Where an further 90 years added to all but the shortest lease, the premises will be equivalent in value to a freehold for many years in the future.
| Lender | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Accord Mortgages | 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. |
| Barclays plc | Leases with less than 70 years at the commencement of the mortgage should be declined (see exception below). Leases with greater than 70 years but fewer than 85 years remaining must be referred to issuing office. Leases with fewer than 70 years should only be referred to the issuing office where the following scenario applies, as discretion may be applied subject to bank approval: • Property is located in any of the following prestigious developments: Cadogan, Crown, Grosvenor, Howard de Walden, Portman or Wellcome Trust Estates in Central London AND • The value of the property subject to the short remaining term is £500,000 or more AND • The loan to value does not exceed 90% for purchases, 90% like for like re-mortgages, 80% for re-mortgages with any element of capital raising and 80% for existing Barclays mortgage borrowers applying for additional borrowing; |
| 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. |
| TSB | Minimum of 70 years at mortgage commencement, with 30 years remaining at mortgage redemption. |
| Virgin | 85 years at the time of completion. If it's less, we require it to be extended on or before completion. |
The conveyancing solicitors that we work with undertake Dartford 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.
In 2014 William, came dangerously close to the 80-year threshold with the lease on his garden apartment in Dartford. In buying his flat two decades ago, the lease term was of little importance. by good luck, it dawned on him that he needed to take action soon on Extending the lease. William was able to extend his lease at the eleventh hour last March. William and the landlord who owned the flat above in the end settled on an amount of £5,500 . If the lease had dropped below 80 years, the premium would have increased by at least £950.
Last month we were contacted by Mrs Jordan Jones , who moved into a one bedroom flat in Dartford in September 1995. The dilemma was if we could approximate the price would likely be to extend the lease by an additional years. Comparable residencies in Dartford with a long lease were worth £191,400. The average ground rent payable was £55 billed monthly. The lease came to a finish on 8 August 2079. Having 54 years unexpired we estimated the premium to the landlord for the lease extension to be within £34,200 and £39,600 exclusive of costs.
An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Dartford premises is Various @ Colombus Square in January 2012. the Tribunal calculated the premiums to be paid for new leases for each of the flats in Mariners Walk to be £3822 and the premium to be paid for the new lease of 2 Knights Court to be £4439. This case related to 13 flats. The unexpired term was 76 years.