Stop! Your Lease Extension in Havering Could Be FREE

Many leaseholders in Havering 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 Havering 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 commence your Havering lease extension


Why you should start your Havering lease extension today:

A Havering leasehold property depreciates with the years remaining on the lease.

Havering leases on residential deteriorating in value. if your lease has in the region of 90 years unexpired, you should start thinking about a lease extension. If lease term dips under eighty years, you will then be required to pay half of the property's 'marriage value' in addition to the standard cost of the lease extension to your landlord. Marriage value is the amount of extra value that a lease extension will add to the property. Leasehold owners in Havering will mostly qualify for a lease extension; however it’s a good idea to check with a conveyancer to confirm your eligibility. In some situations you may not qualify. There are also strict deadlines and steps to follow once the process is triggered so it’s wise to be guided by a conveyancing solicitor during the process.

Havering property with a lease extension is almost the same value as a freehold

It is conventional wisdom that a property with in excess of 100 years remaining is worth roughly the same as a freehold. Where an additional ninety years added to any lease with more than 35 years unexpired, the residence will be equivalent in value to a freehold for many years ahead.

Banks and Building Societies will not loan monies on a short lease

The definition of a short lease depends on the specific mortgage company, yet mortgage lenders start to become jittery at around 75 years. This may cause difficulties when you need to dispose of or refinance your property as it will be effectively unmortgageable. Even though you may not have an immediate plan to sell but when you do your purchaser must wait a couple of years before being able to start the legal procedures for an extension to the lease.

Lender Requirement
Barclays plc Leases with less than 70 years at the commencement of the mortgage are not acceptable.

Leases with fewer than 70 years should only be referred to the issuing office where the following scenario applies, as discretion may be applied subject to bank approval:

• Property is located in any of the following prestigious developments: Cadogan, Crown, Grosvenor, Howard de Walden, Portman or Wellcome Trust Estates in Central London AND
• The value of the property subject to the short remaining term is £500,000 or more AND
• The loan to value does not exceed 90% for purchases, 90% like for like re-mortgages, 80% for re-mortgages with any element of capital raising and 80% for existing Barclays mortgage borrowers applying for additional borrowing;
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.
Halifax Minimum 70 years from the date of the mortgage.
National Westminster Bank Mortgage term plus 30 years.

For Shared Ownership, the remaining term of the lease must be at least 30 years plus the term of the mortgage at the outset of the mortgage.

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

The lawyers that we work with handle Havering 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 conveyancer we work with provide it.

Havering Lease Extension Example Cases:

Kayleigh, Havering, London,

After unsuccessful correspondence with the freeholder of her basement flat in Havering, Kayleigh initiated the lease extension process just as her lease was approaching the critical eighty-year deadline. The lease extension completed in January 2009. The landlord’s costs were negotiated to about 600 pounds.

Havering case:

Dr Hugo Gunderson purchased a garden flat in Havering in January 2012. The dilemma was if we could estimate the compensation to the landlord would likely be for a 90 year extension to my lease. Identical residencies in Havering with a long lease were valued about £201,200. The mid-range ground rent payable was £55 collected per annum. The lease expired in 2082. Taking into account 56 years remaining we calculated the premium to the landlord for the lease extension to be within £31,400 and £36,200 plus legals.

Decision in Havering

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Havering property is 37 Lodge Court High Street in November 2013. the decision of the LVT was that the premium to be paid for the new lease was £25,559 This case affected 1 flat. The unexpired term was 57.5 years.