Stop! Your Lease Extension in Green Street Green Could Be FREE

Many leaseholders in Green Street Green 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 Green Street Green 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 start your Green Street Green lease extension


Why you should start your Green Street Green lease extension today:

A Green Street Green lease depreciates with the years remaining on the lease.

The re-sale value of a leasehold property in Green Street Green is impacted by how long the lease has remaining. If it is near to or fewer than 80 years you should envisage problems on re-sale, so it is advisable to arrange for a lease extension prior to purchasing. It is ideal to start the lease extension process when the lease still has 82 years unexpired so that formalities can be concluded well before the eighty year cut off point. Statute enables Green Street Green qualifying lessees to an additional term of ninety years on top of the existing term, at a peppercorn rent (no ground rent). The reason 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.

An extended lease is almost the same value as a freehold

Leasehold residencies in Green Street Green with more than 100 years left on the lease are sometimes regarded as a ‘virtual freehold’. This is where the lease is worth the same as a freehold interest in your property. In such circumstances there is often little to be gained by buying the freehold unless savings on ground rent and estate charges justify it.

Lending institutions may not grant a mortgage with a short lease

Mortgage Lenders differ in their lending criteria. Some set the bar at seventy five years remaining on the lease; others may be content with anything over 70 years. With less than 60 years, it may be challenging to obtain a mortgage in the first place.

Lender Requirement
Bank of Scotland Minimum 70 years from the date of the mortgage.
Barnsley Building Society 60 years from the date of the mortgage application subject to 35 years remaining at the end of the mortgage term.
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.
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.

Get in touch with one of our Green Street Green lease extension solicitors or enfranchisement solicitors

Using our service will provide you increased control over the value of your Green Street Green leasehold, as your property will be more valuable and saleable in respect of lease length should you wish to sell. The conveyancers that we work with have a in-depth market knowledge handling many hundreds of lease extensions or freehold purchase transactions.

Green Street Green Lease Extension Example Cases:

Eliot, Green Street Green, South East London

Half a year ago Eliot, came dangerously close to the 80-year mark with the lease on his basement apartment in Green Street Green. Having purchased his home twenty years previously, the length of the lease was of minimal importance. Luckily, he became aware that he would imminently be paying way over the odds for Extending the lease. Eliot extended the lease just ahead of time last May. Eliot and the freeholder eventually settled on an amount of £5,500 . If he failed to meet the deadline, the price would have increased by a minimum £900.

Green Street Green case:

In 2011 we were contacted by Ms S Watson who, having owned a studio apartment in Green Street Green in May 2004. The dilemma was if we could shed any light on how much (roughly) premium could be for a ninety year extension to my lease. Comparative flats in Green Street Green with an extended lease were in the region of £295,000. The mid-range ground rent payable was £45 billed per annum. The lease end date was in 2100. Taking into account 74 years unexpired we approximated the compensation to the freeholder to extend the lease to be within £8,600 and £9,800 not including expenses.

Decision in Bromley

An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a Green Street Green premises is 1 Southlands Court Southlands Road in September 2013. The Leasehold Valuation Tribunal determined that the premium to be paid by the tenant on the grant of a new lease, in accordance with section 56 and Schedule 13 of the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 was £30,541 This case was in relation to 1 flat. The remaining number of years on the lease was 50.57 years.