When it comes to long leasehold premises in Dartmouth, you are in fact renting it for a certain amount of time. In recent years flat leases are usually granted for 99 years or 125. Many leasehold owners become complacent as this seems like a long period of time, you should consider extending the lease sooner as opposed to later. Accepted thinking is that the shorter the number of years is the cost of extending the lease increases markedly particularly once there are fewer than 80 years remaining. Anyone in Dartmouth with a lease drawing near to 81 years left should seriously consider extending it as soon as possible. When a lease has less than eighty years left, under the current legislation the freeholder is entitled to calculate and charge a larger amount, assessed on a technical computation, strangely termed as “marriage value” which is due.
Leasehold properties in Dartmouth with in excess of 100 years left on the lease are often referred to as ‘virtual freehold’. This is where the lease is worth the same as a freehold interest in your home. In such circumstances there is often little to be gained by buying the freehold unless savings on ground rent and service charges merit it.
| Lender | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Barnsley Building Society | 60 years from the date of the mortgage application subject to 35 years remaining at the end of the mortgage term. |
| 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. |
| Halifax | Minimum 70 years from the date of the mortgage. |
| 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 conveyancers that we work with undertake Dartmouth 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 conveyancer we work with provide it.
Trailing protracted discussions with the landlord of her one bedroom flat in Dartmouth, Kelsey started the lease extension process just as the lease was approaching the all-important 80-year mark. The lease extension was concluded in February 2015. The freeholder’s costs were negotiated to less than 650 GBP.
Last Summer we were phoned by Mr and Mrs. S Nguyen , who took over the lease of a recently refurbished apartment in Dartmouth in April 1998. The dilemma was if we could estimate the price would likely be to extend the lease by an additional years. Comparable homes in Dartmouth with a long lease were worth £208,600. The average amount of ground rent was £60 collected quarterly. The lease expiry date was in 2082. Considering the 57 years as a residual term we estimated the compensation to the landlord to extend the lease to be between £30,400 and £35,200 not including legals.
In 2014 we were e-mailed by Dr L Gunderson who, having purchased a studio apartment in Dartmouth in August 2001. The question was if we could approximate the price would be for a ninety year lease extension. Similar properties in Dartmouth with an extended lease were valued about £200,000. The mid-range ground rent payable was £50 billed quarterly. The lease ended on 12 February 2102. Considering the 77 years left we estimated the compensation to the landlord for the lease extension to be within £8,600 and £9,800 plus expenses.