It’s an underpublicised certainty that a Heswall residential lease is a wasting asset. As the lease term reduces so does the value of the property. The extent of this is taken for granted in the early years due to the reduction being disguised by increases in the Heswall property market.Once your lease nears 85ish years, you need to start considering a lease extension. If lease term drops below eighty years, you will then be required to pay 50% of the property's 'marriage value' on top of the usual cost of the lease extension to the landlord. Marriage value is the amount of additional value that a lease extension will add the property The majority of leasehold owners in Heswall will be able to extend under the legislation; however a conveyancing solicitor will be able to clarify whether you qualify for an extension. In some cases you may not qualify. There are also strict timeframes and procedures to be adhered to once the process has commenced and you will need to be guided by your conveyancer throughout the process.
Leasehold premises in Heswall with more than one hundred years left on the lease are sometimes referred to as ‘virtual freehold’. This is where the lease value the same as a freehold interest in your home. In such situations there is often little to be gained by buying the freehold unless savings on ground rent and maintenance charges warrant it.
| Lender | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Accord Mortgages | 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. |
| 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. |
| Royal Bank of Scotland | Mortgage term plus 30 years. |
| 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. |
The conveyancing solicitors that we work with handle Heswall 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 lawyer we work with provide it.
In the wake of eight months of unsuccessful negotiations with the landlord of her studio apartment in Heswall, Yasmin commenced the lease extension process just as her lease was approaching the all-important eighty-year threshold. The lease extension was concluded in May 2011. The landlord’s charges were restricted to a tad over 600 GBP.
Last March we were contacted by Dr S Phillips , who moved into a one bedroom flat in Heswall in January 2009. We are asked if we could estimate the compensation to the landlord would be to prolong the lease by ninety years. Similar properties in Heswall with 100 year plus lease were in the region of £280,000. The mid-range amount of ground rent was £55 billed monthly. The lease concluded in 2104. Considering the 78 years left we calculated the premium to the landlord to extend the lease to be between £13,300 and £15,400 plus legals.
Last month we were contacted by Mr and Mrs. Y White , who took over the lease of a basement apartment in Heswall in June 2009. We are asked if we could estimate the compensation to the landlord would likely be for a ninety year extension to my lease. Comparative homes in Heswall with an extended lease were valued around £191,000. The average amount of ground rent was £65 collected quarterly. The lease elapsed in 2084. Having 58 years as a residual term we calculated the compensation to the freeholder to extend the lease to be between £23,800 and £27,400 not including legals.