Stop! Your Lease Extension in East Barming Could Be FREE

Many leaseholders in East Barming 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 East Barming 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 East Barming lease extension


Top reasons for lease extension now:

A East Barming lease depreciates with the years remaining on the lease.

The market value of a leasehold property in East Barming depends on how many years the lease has left to run. If it is close to or less than 80 years you should expect difficulties on re-sale, so it is recommended to arrange for a lease extension prior to buying. It is ideal to start the process of extending the lease is when a lease still has 82 years unexpired so that a lease extension can be finalised prior to the 80 year threshold. Current legislation entitles East Barming qualifying lessees to obtain a new lease which will be for the current unexpired lease term plus an additional term of ninety years. The reason of the valuation is to arrive at an opinion of the premium payable by the lessee to the freeholder for the purchase of the lease extension.

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

It is generally accepted that a property with over one hundred years unexpired lease term is worth roughly the equivalent as a freehold. Where an further 90 years added to all but the shortest lease, the residence will be equivalent in value to a freehold for many years in the future.

Mortgage lenders may decide not to grant a mortgage with a short lease

Banks and building societies are inclined not grant a mortgage on short residential leases. You most probably encounter difficulties if you need to sell your flat in East Barming if the remaining term of your lease is under the criteria set by the majority of banks and building societies. Different mortgage companies have different requirements but on the whole theyrequire an unexpired term of at least 65 years.

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.
Halifax Minimum 70 years from the date of the mortgage.
Leeds Building Society 85 years remaining from the start of the mortgage.
National Westminster Bank Mortgage term plus 30 years.

For Shared Ownership, the remaining term of the lease must be at least 30 years plus the term of the mortgage at the outset of the mortgage.
Nationwide Building Society - Our minimum unexpired lease term is 55 years, except where lending is over 85% of the purchase price/valuation on a second hand flat, in which case our minimum unexpired term is 90 years.
- There must be at least 30 years remaining at the end of the mortgage term (regardless of the length of lease at the start).

Where the unexpired lease term is different to that recorded on the mortgage offer, the following clarifies if we need to be informed:

Second hand property:
- If the unexpired lease term on the offer is 85 years or more - only advise us if the actual lease term is less than 85 years
- if the unexpired lease term on the offer is less than 85 years – advise us if the actual lease term is different than reported
- For equity share applications - advise us if the actual lease term is different than reported on the offer
- Where lending is over 85% of the purchase price/valuation on a second hand flat and the unexpired lease term on the offer is 90 years or more - only advise us if the actual lease term is less than 90 years.

New build property:
- If the unexpired lease term stated on the offer is 125 years (flat) / 250 years (house) or more - only advise us if the actual lease term is less than 125 years (flat) / 250 years (house)
- For equity share applications - always advise us if the actual lease term is different than reported on the offer

Lease terms such as ground rent and event fees must be reasonable at all times during the term of the lease and adhere to our requirements below. If you’re unsure as to whether the terms of a lease are unreasonable or onerous, please refer the details to us in plain English for Valuer consideration. If the potentially onerous terms are in relation to the ground rent please include the current ground rent figure per annum, how often it will be reviewed and the price structure it will be reviewed against. See the guidance below.

SECOND HAND PROPERTIES

Unacceptable - advise Issuing Office (Will be declined):
- Unexpired lease term less than 55 years
- Unexpired lease term less than 90 years where we are lending more than 85% of the purchase price/valuation on a second hand flat
- Less than 30 years remaining at the end of the mortgage term
- Ground Rent greater than 0.5% of the property value
- Ground Rent doubles less than every 20 years (e.g. doubles every 5, 10 or 15 years) - acceptable if doubles every 20 years or more
- Ground Rent is compounded RPI
- Ground Rent review period is less than or equal to 5 years

Refer to Issuing Office (Valuer will consider any impact on valuation figure and marketability):
- Unexpired lease term is 55 to 85 years
- Ground Rent greater than 0.1% and less than or equal to 0.5% of the property value
- Ground Rent escalation is linked to any indices greater than RPI
- Ground Rent escalation is linked to the value of the building*
- Ground Rent review period is greater than 5 and less than 10 years
- Event clauses exist for normal use e.g. changing the carpet, installing a TV aerial, etc
- Estate Rent Charges greater than £500 p/a (please provide details of what the charges cover)
- Service Charges greater than 1% of property value p/a (please provide details of what the charges cover)
- Anything that appears onerous, unusual or out of the ordinary

Acceptable (no requirement to advise Issuing Office):
- Unexpired lease term greater than 85 years (Minimum 90 years where we are lending more than 85% of the purchase price/valuation on a second hand flat)
- Ground Rent less than or equal to 0.1% of the property value
- Ground Rent review period greater than or equal to 10 years
- Ground Rent escalation less than or equal to RPI

NEW BUILD PROPERTIES (includes office conversions)

Unacceptable - advise Issuing Office (Will be declined)
- Unexpired lease term less than 125 years on a new build flat or less than 250 years on a new build house (does not apply to Shared Ownership)
- Any lease which is subject to a Ground Rent (or Annual Rent) being charged which is more than on a peppercorn basis
- Any lease which is subject to a Ground Rent (or Annual Rent) being charged which is more than on a peppercorn basis

Refer to Issuing Office (Valuer will consider any impact on valuation figure and marketability):
- Event clauses exist for normal use e.g. changing the carpet, installing a TV aerial etc
- Estate Rent Charges greater than £500 p/a (please provide details of what the charges cover)
- Service Charges greater than 1% of property value p/a (please provide details of what the charges cover)
- Anything else appears onerous, unusual or out of the ordinary

Acceptable (no requirement to advise Issuing Office):
- Unexpired lease term greater than or equal to 125 years on a new build flat or greater than or equal to 250 years on a new build house
- A lease subject to a peppercorn Ground Rent (Annual Rent) charges

For the avoidance of doubt, any New Build properties completed but not sold pre-30 June 2022 will only be acceptable if the Lease conforms to the above guidance.

* Where the Ground Rent escalation is linked to the value of the building, please provide the following:
- How is the value of the block/unit currently calculated and if the assessment relates to the block(s), how is the Ground Rent calculated/apportioned per property?
- The current valuation and Ground Rent for each unit
- What is the mechanism for future valuations of the block and how is the Ground Rent calculated/apportioned?
- What is the right of appeal? And is this a documented process within the lease?
- Who bears the cost of the valuation (and appeal) process?
- Confirmation the review period is not less than twenty years.

Lease Extensions

We require all Lease Extensions to be completed under the Leasehold Reform Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 and to meet the above criteria as a minimum. Where you become aware that it does not meet these requirements, please refer to Issuing Office.

Please ensure that all lender enquiries are submitted (with full documentation/requirements) at least 2 weeks prior to exchange to allow sufficient time for review and decisioning.

What makes us experts in East Barming lease extensions?

Retaining our service will provide you better control over the value of your East Barming leasehold, as your property will be more valuable and marketable in relation to the lease length should you decide to sell. The conveyancing solicitors that we work with have a in-depth market knowledge handling many hundreds of lease extensions or freehold purchase transactions.

East Barming Lease Extension Case Studies:

Sam, East Barming, Kent,

Sam was the the leasehold proprietor of a high value flat in East Barming on the market with a lease of fraction over 61 years left. Sam informally spoke with his freeholder a well known Bristol-based freehold company for a lease extension. The freeholder was keen to give an extension on non-statutory terms taking the lease to 125 years subject to a new rent to start with set at £200 per annum and increase every 25 years thereafter. No ground rent would be payable on a lease extension were Sam to exercise his statutory right. Sam obtained expert advice and was able to make an informed decision and handle with the matter and sell the property.

East Barming case:

In 2010 we were approached by Dr Harrison White who, having was assigned a lease of a ground floor flat in East Barming in February 1995. We are asked if we could shed any light on how much (approximately) compensation to the landlord would be for a 90 year extension to my lease. Similar premises in East Barming with 100 year plus lease were in the region of £245,000. The mid-range amount of ground rent was £50 invoiced quarterly. The lease finished in 2094. Considering the 68 years left we estimated the compensation to the freeholder to extend the lease to be between £9,500 and £11,000 not including professional charges.

East Barming case:

In 2010 we were contacted by Ms A Kelly who, having bought a studio flat in East Barming in January 1995. We are asked if we could approximate the price would likely be to extend the lease by 90 years. Comparative residencies in East Barming with a long lease were valued around £285,000. The mid-range amount of ground rent was £55 collected every twelve months. The lease concluded in 2105. Considering the 79 years outstanding we estimated the premium to the landlord to extend the lease to be within £13,300 and £15,400 not including legals.