Stop! Your Lease Extension in Great Missenden Could Be FREE

Many leaseholders in Great Missenden 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 Great Missenden 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 Great Missenden lease extension


Top reasons for lease extension now:

A Great Missenden lease depreciates with the years remaining on the lease.

The re-sale value of a leasehold property in Great Missenden is impacted by how many years the lease has left to run. If it is close to or less than eighty years you should expect difficulties on re-sale, so it is advisable to arrange for a lease extension prior to purchasing. It is preferable to commence the lease extension process when the lease still has 82 years unexpired so that all matters can be addressed well before the 80 year cut off point. Leasehold Reform legislation enables Great Missenden qualifying lessees to an additional term of ninety years in addition to the unexpired term, at a nominal rent (no ground rent). The purpose of the valuation is to arrive at an opinion of the sum payable by the lessee to the freeholder for the purchase of the lease extension.

Great Missenden property with a lease extension has roughly the same value as a freehold

It is conventional wisdom that a property with over one hundred years remaining is worth approximately the equivalent as a freehold. Where an further ninety years added to all but the shortest lease, the premises will be worth the same as a freehold for many years ahead.

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

Nearly all mortgage companies insist on a lengthy amount of time remaining on a leasehold property before they will consider providing a mortgage on it. Even if you don't need a mortgage, you should keep in mind that it is probable that someone wanting to buy your property in the future might well do, so if they are not able to secure a mortgage, then the market price of your property will likely be adversely impacted. In the last decade the majority of banks and building societies have increased the required minimum lease length that they are willing to accept

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.
Bank of Scotland 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.
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
The Mortgage Works Minimum unexpired lease term is 70 years with 30 years remaining at the end of the mortgage term.
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

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 70 years
- 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 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 70 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 1.0% 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
- 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
- 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 reviewed and altered on any review basis or methodology

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 1.0% 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 the 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.

Why use us for your lease extension in Great Missenden?

The conveyancing solicitors that we work with undertake Great Missenden 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.

Great Missenden Lease Extension Example Cases:

Alexander, Great Missenden, Buckinghamshire,

Alexander was the the leasehold proprietor of a studio flat in Great Missenden on the market with a lease of a few days over fifty eight years left. Alexander on an informal basis approached his landlord being a well known Manchester-based freehold company for a lease extension. The landlord indicated a willingness to extend the lease to 125 years subject to a new rent initially set at £150 per annum and doubled every 25 years thereafter. No ground rent would be payable on a lease extension were Alexander to exercise his statutory right. Alexander obtained expert legal guidance and was able to make a more informed decision and handle with the matter and readily saleable.

Great Missenden case:

In 2010 we were contacted by Dr Isobel Phillips who, having purchased a basement apartment in Great Missenden in October 2010. The question was if we could estimate the price would be to prolong the lease by an additional years. Comparative properties in Great Missenden with 100 year plus lease were worth £256,600. The mid-range ground rent payable was £60 billed quarterly. The lease expiry date was on 12 July 2078. Given that there were 52 years outstanding we approximated the premium to the landlord for the lease extension to be between £39,000 and £45,000 not including fees.

Great Missenden case:

Last February we were approach by Mr and Mrs. A Sharif , who acquired a basement flat in Great Missenden in October 2002. We are asked if we could estimate the price would likely be to extend the lease by ninety years. Comparable premises in Great Missenden with 100 year plus lease were valued around £218,000. The average amount of ground rent was £45 invoiced quarterly. The lease came to a finish on 14 October 2089. Taking into account 63 years as a residual term we calculated the premium to the landlord to extend the lease to be between £17,100 and £19,800 not including expenses.