Unfortunately that a Harwich residential lease is a deteriorating asset. As the lease term reduces so does the value of the property. The extent of this is not fully appreciated in the early years due to the loss of value being disguised by increases in the Harwich property prices.Once your lease nears 85ish years, you need to start considering a lease extension. If lease term drops under eighty years, you will end up paying 50% of the property's 'marriage value' on top of the usual cost of the lease extension to the landlord. The marriage fee is the amount of extra value that a lease extension will add the property The majority of leasehold owners in Harwich will be able to extend under the legislation; however a lawyer should be able to clarify if you are eligibility. In some situations you may not qualify. There are also strict deadlines and procedures to be adhered to once the process is initiated and you will need to be guided by your conveyancer for the duration of the formalities.
It is generally accepted that a residential leasehold with more than 100 years remaining is worth approximately the equivalent 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.
| Lender | Requirement |
|---|---|
| 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. |
| Leeds Building Society | 85 years remaining from the start 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 |
| Royal Bank of Scotland | Mortgage term plus 30 years. |
Irrespective of whether you are a tenant or a landlord in Harwich,the lease extension experts 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 Harwich valuers.
Following protracted negotiations with the freeholder of her one bedroom apartment in Harwich, Rachel commenced the lease extension process just as the lease was nearing the all-important eighty-year threshold. The legal work completed in November 2015. The freeholder’s fees were kept to an absolute minimum.
In 2014 we were approached by Ms Robyn Morgan who, having owned a garden flat in Harwich in April 2012. We are asked if we could approximate the compensation to the landlord could be for a 90 year lease extension. Similar flats in Harwich with a long lease were in the region of £254,200. The average ground rent payable was £60 invoiced annually. The lease concluded in 2077. Taking into account 51 years unexpired we calculated the premium to the freeholder to extend the lease to be within £43,700 and £50,600 plus professional charges.
Last November we were e-mailed by Mr and Mrs. J Khan , who moved into a one bedroom flat in Harwich in March 2011. The dilemma was if we could estimate the price would likely be to extend the lease by a further 90 years. Comparative properties in Harwich with an extended lease were worth £210,600. The average amount of ground rent was £45 collected quarterly. The lease concluded on 2 March 2088. Given that there were 62 years as a residual term we calculated the premium to the freeholder to extend the lease to be within £18,100 and £20,800 not including costs.