With a domestic leasehold premises in Harlington, you effectively rent it for a certain amount of time. These days flat leases are usually granted for 99 years or 125. Even though this may appear like a lengthy period of time, you should think about a lease extension sooner as opposed to later. Accepted thinking is that the shorter the number of years is the cost of extending the lease becomes disproportionately greater notably when there are less than eighty years left. Leasehold owners in Harlington with a lease drawing near to 81 years remaining should seriously consider extending it without delay. When a lease has less than 80 years left, under the current legislation the landlord can calculate and charge a larger amount, assessed on a technical multiplication, strangely termed as “marriage value” which is payable.
Leasehold premises in Harlington with over one hundred years unexpired on the lease are sometimes referred to as ‘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 purchasing the reversionary interest unless savings on ground rent and estate charges warrant it.
| Lender | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Bank of Scotland | Minimum 70 years from the date of the mortgage. |
| 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. |
| 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. |
| 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 |
The conveyancing solicitors that we work with undertake Harlington 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.
Joseph owned a 2 bedroom flat in Harlington on the market with a lease of just over sixty years outstanding. Joseph on an informal basis spoke with his freeholder being a well known Manchester-based freehold company and enquired on a premium to extend the lease. The freeholder was keen to agree an extension on non-statutory terms taking the lease to 125 years on the basis of a new rent initially set at £150 per annum and doubled every 25 years thereafter. No ground rent would be due on a lease extension were Joseph to exercise his statutory right. Joseph procured expert legal guidance and was able to make an informed judgement and deal with the matter and readily saleable.
Dr Stanley Petit completed a one bedroom flat in Harlington in August 2006. The dilemma was if we could approximate the compensation to the landlord would be to prolong the lease by 90 years. Comparable flats in Harlington with a long lease were worth £176,200. The average amount of ground rent was £65 billed annually. The lease expiry date was on 25 October 2082. Taking into account 56 years left we approximated the compensation to the landlord for the lease extension to be within £29,500 and £34,000 exclusive of fees.
An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement matter before the tribunal for a Harlington premises is 164 Nestles Avenue in October 2013. The tribunal agreed with the proposed price of £20,158 for the freehold and determined that that sum is the amount to be paid into court This case was in relation to 2 flats. The remaining number of years on the lease was 69 years.