Stop! Your Lease Extension in Eccleston Could Be FREE

Many leaseholders in Eccleston 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 Eccleston 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.

Main reasons to commence your Eccleston lease extension


Top reasons for lease extension now:

Increase your lease and increase your Eccleston property value

Eccleston leases on residential properties are gradually losing value. Where your lease has approximately 90 years unexpired, you should start thinking about a lease extension. 80 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 Eccleston will mostly qualify for a lease extension; however a solicitor will check if you qualify. In certain circumstances you may not qualify. There are prescribed timetables and formalities to comply with once the process is initiated so it’s best to be guided by a lawyer during the process.

An extended lease is almost the same value as a freehold

It is conventional wisdom that a property with in excess of one hundred years unexpired lease term is worth roughly the same as a freehold. Where an additional 90 years added to all but the shortest lease, the premises will be worth the same as a freehold for decades to come.

Lending institutions may not finance a property on a short lease

The trend since the credit crunch has been for banks to tighten lending criteria across the board - this has extended to the property over which the mortgage is to be charged. This has meant the unexpired lease term required by banks has increased. Historically banks would lend on a lease with twenty years plus the term of the loan - routinely fifty year leases but those requirements evolved by the requirement for longer and longer leases - many now have 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.
National Westminster Bank Mortgage term plus 30 years.

For Shared Ownership, the remaining term of the lease must be at least 75 years plus the term of the mortgage at the outset of the mortgage.
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 Eccleston lease extension solicitors or enfranchisement solicitors

Irrespective of whether you are a tenant or a freeholder in Eccleston,the lease extension solicitors that we work with will always be willing to discuss any residential leasehold matters and offer you the benefit of their experience and the close ties they enjoy with Eccleston valuers.

Eccleston Lease Extension Example Cases:

Isabella, Eccleston, Merseyside,

Off the back of protracted negotiations with the freeholder of her purpose-built flat in Eccleston, Isabella commenced the lease extension process just as the lease was nearing the crucial eighty-year deadline. The transaction was concluded in February 2013. The landlord’s costs were restricted to about four hundred pounds.

Eccleston case:

Mrs Naomi Cooper bought a garden flat in Eccleston in May 2006. The dilemma was if we could shed any light on how much (roughly) price would be to prolong the lease by an additional years. Similar properties in Eccleston with 100 year plus lease were valued about £218,000. The mid-range amount of ground rent was £45 billed annually. The lease end date was in 2089. Given that there were 63 years unexpired we calculated the premium to the landlord for the lease extension to be between £17,100 and £19,800 not including costs.

Eccleston case:

In 2010 we were phoned by Dr Michael Collins who, having completed a purpose-built flat in Eccleston in January 2000. We are asked if we could shed any light on how much (roughly) premium would likely be for a ninety year extension to my lease. Comparable properties in Eccleston with a long lease were in the region of £270,000. The mid-range ground rent payable was £55 collected yearly. The lease ended on 18 October 2100. Given that there were 74 years as a residual term we approximated the compensation to the freeholder to extend the lease to be between £9,500 and £11,000 plus fees.