With a domestic leasehold premises in Hastings, you are actually purchasing a right to live in a property for a set period of time. Modern flat leases are usually granted for 99 years or 125. Even though this may appear like a lengthy period of time, you may consider extending the lease sooner as opposed to later. Accepted thinking is that the shorter the lease is the cost of extending the lease gets disproportionately greater notably once there are fewer than eighty years left. Leasehold owners in Hastings with a lease approaching 81 years left should seriously think of extending it without delay. Once a lease has below 80 years left, under the current statute the landlord is entitled to calculate and demand a larger amount, based on a technical multiplication, known as “marriage value” which is due.
Leasehold properties in Hastings with over 100 years unexpired on the lease are often regarded as a ‘virtual freehold’. This is where the lease is worth the same as a freehold interest in your premises. In such circumstances there is often little upside in buying the reversionary interest unless savings on ground rent and service charges warrant it.
| Lender | Requirement |
|---|---|
| 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. |
| Lloyds TSB Scotland | Minimum 70 years from the date of the mortgage. |
| TSB | Minimum of 70 years at mortgage commencement, with 30 years remaining at mortgage redemption. |
| Yorkshire 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. |
Using our service will provide you better control over the value of your Hastings leasehold, as your property will be more valuable and saleable in respect of lease length should you decide to sell. The conveyancing solicitors that we work with are well versed in the legislation handling many hundreds of lease extensions or freehold purchase transactions.
Following protracted correspondence with the freeholder of her purpose-built flat in Hastings, Chloe initiated the lease extension process just as her lease was approaching the all-important 80-year deadline. The transaction was finalised in November 2005. The freeholder’s charges were negotiated to slightly above 700 GBP.
Mr and Mrs. F Watson acquired a first floor flat in Hastings in May 1997. We are asked if we could shed any light on how much (roughly) premium would be for a ninety year extension to my lease. Comparable premises in Hastings with an extended lease were valued about £255,000. The average amount of ground rent was £50 collected yearly. The lease expired in 2096. Given that there were 70 years remaining we calculated the compensation to the landlord for the lease extension to be within £9,500 and £11,000 plus fees.
Last Autumn we were approach by Mrs T Bailey , who acquired a one bedroom flat in Hastings in August 2002. The question was if we could shed any light on how much (roughly) compensation to the landlord would likely be to prolong the lease by an additional years. Similar flats in Hastings with a long lease were worth £246,800. The mid-range amount of ground rent was £60 billed quarterly. The lease concluded on 3 April 2076. Considering the 50 years outstanding we estimated the premium to the landlord for the lease extension to be between £44,700 and £51,600 exclusive of costs.