Stop! Your Lease Extension in East Oxford Could Be FREE

Many leaseholders in East Oxford 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 Oxford 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 Oxford lease extension


Main reasons to start your East Oxford lease extension today:

A East Oxford leasehold property depreciates with the years remaining on the lease.

East Oxford leases on residential deteriorating in value. Where your lease has about 90 years unexpired, you should start considering the need for a lease extension. Eighty years is a significant number: when the unexpired term of a lease dips below this level then you begin incurring an additional element called marriage value. Flat owners in East Oxford will usually be legally entitled to a lease extension; however it’s a good idea to check with a conveyancing solicitor to check your eligibility. In some circumstances you may not qualify. There are also strict deadlines and steps to comply with once the process is initiated so it’s prudent to be guided by a conveyancing solicitor during the process.

East Oxford property with a lease extension has roughly the same value as a freehold

Leasehold properties in East Oxford with in excess of one hundred years outstanding on the lease are often regarded as a ‘virtual freehold’. This is where the lease is worth the same as a freehold interest in your home. In such situations there is often little to be gained by buying the freehold unless savings on ground rent and service charges warrant it.

Banks and Building Societies may decide not to lend on a short lease

The trend since 2008 has been for banks to tighten lending requirements generally - this has extended to the types of security over which the home loan is to be granted. This has resulted in the minimum number of years remaining under the lease required by mortgage companies has increased. In the past mortgage companies would grant a mortgage on a lease with 25 years plus the term of the loan - routinely fifty year leases but those requirements evolved by the requirement for lengthy leases - many use a minimum term of 75 years as a prerequisite.

Lender Requirement
Barclays plc Leases with less than 70 years at the commencement of the mortgage are not acceptable.

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;
Halifax Minimum 70 years from the date of the mortgage.
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.
TSB Minimum of 70 years at mortgage commencement, with 30 years remaining at mortgage redemption.
Yorkshire 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.

Why use us for your lease extension in East Oxford?

The conveyancing solicitors that we work with undertake East Oxford 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 lawyer we work with provide it.

East Oxford Lease Extension Example Cases:

Jude, East Oxford, Oxfordshire

Two years ago Jude, started to get near to the eighty-year threshold with the lease on his first floor apartment in East Oxford. In buying his flat two decades ago, the unexpired term was of no significance. As luck would have it, he noticed he would imminently be paying way over the odds for a lease extension. Jude arranged for a lease extension just under the wire in August. Jude and the landlord who owned the flat above subsequently settled on the final figure of £6,000 . If the lease had slipped to less than 80 years, the sum would have gone up by a minimum £1,000.

East Oxford case:

Last Summer we were contacted by Mr and Mrs. K Alexander , who moved into a purpose-built apartment in East Oxford in March 1995. The question was if we could estimate the premium would be for a 90 year extension to my lease. Comparable properties in East Oxford with a long lease were worth £300,000. The mid-range ground rent payable was £50 collected annually. The lease terminated in 2102. Considering the 76 years outstanding we calculated the compensation to the landlord to extend the lease to be within £8,600 and £9,800 plus costs.

East Oxford case:

Mr D Rogers purchased a ground floor apartment in East Oxford in September 2003. The dilemma was if we could shed any light on how much (approximately) price would likely be for a 90 year extension to my lease. Comparable properties in East Oxford with a long lease were valued around £257,800. The average ground rent payable was £65 collected yearly. The lease concluded on 10 March 2091. Considering the 65 years remaining we approximated the compensation to the landlord to extend the lease to be within £17,100 and £19,800 not including costs.