Stop! Your Lease Extension in Kirkby In Furness Could Be FREE

Many leaseholders in Kirkby In Furness 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 Kirkby In Furness 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.

Main reasons to start your Kirkby In Furness lease extension


Why you should start your Kirkby In Furness lease extension today:

Increase your lease and increase your Kirkby In Furness property value

The market value of a leasehold property in Kirkby In Furness depends on how long the lease has left to run. If it is close to or less than eighty years you should expect problems on re-sale, so it is recommended to arrange for the lease to be extended ahead of buying. It is preferable to commence the process of extending the lease is when the lease still has 82 years to run so that a lease extension can be finalised in advance of the eighty year mark. Leasehold Reform legislation enables Kirkby In Furness qualifying lessees to a 90 year extension added to their residual lease term (ie if your lease has fifty years left the statutory lease extension will provide a new term of 140 years). The reason of the valuation is to determine the sum payable by the lessee to the freeholder for the purchase of the lease extension.

Kirkby In Furness property with a lease extension has roughly the same value as a freehold

Leasehold premises in Kirkby In Furness with over one hundred years unexpired on the lease are often regarded as a ‘virtual freehold’. This is where the lease value the same as a freehold interest in your property. In such situations there is often little to be gained by buying the freehold unless savings on ground rent and service charges merit it.

Lending institutions may decide not to issue a mortgage with a short lease

Whether or not the lease is be regarded as a short lease varies by mortgage company, yet lending institutions start to get concerned at around 75 years. This will cause difficulties when you wish to market or remortgage your flat as it will be practically unmortgageable. You may not have an imminent plan to sell but when you do your purchaser will need to hold off for two years before being able to commence the legal procedures for an extension to the lease.

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.
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.
Halifax Minimum 70 years from the date of the mortgage.
TSB Minimum of 70 years at mortgage commencement, with 30 years remaining at mortgage redemption.
The Mortgage Works Minimum unexpired lease term is 70 years with 30 years remaining at the end of the mortgage term.
Where the unexpired lease term is different to that recorded on the mortgage offer, the following clarifies if we need to be informed:

Second hand property:
- If the unexpired lease term on the offer is 85 years or more - only advise us if the actual lease term is less than 85 years
- if the unexpired lease term on the offer is less than 85 years – advise us if the actual lease term is different than reported
- For equity share applications - advise us if the actual lease term is different than reported on the offer

New build property:
- If the unexpired lease term stated on the offer is 125 years (flat) / 250 years (house) or more - only advise us if the actual lease term is less than 125 years (flat) / 250 years (house)
- For equity share applications - always advise us if the actual lease term is different than reported on the offer

Lease terms such as ground rent and event fees must be reasonable at all times during the term of the lease and adhere to our requirements below. If you’re unsure as to whether the terms of a lease are unreasonable or onerous, please refer the details to us in plain English for Valuer consideration. If the potentially onerous terms are in relation to the ground rent please include the current ground rent figure per annum, how often it will be reviewed and the price structure it will be reviewed against. See the guidance below.

SECOND HAND PROPERTIES

Unacceptable - advise Issuing Office (Will be declined):
- Unexpired lease term less than 70 years
- Less than 30 years remaining at the end of the mortgage term
- Ground Rent greater than 0.5% of the property value
- Ground Rent doubles less than every 20 years (e.g. doubles every 5, 10 or 15 years) - acceptable if doubles every 20 years or more
- Ground Rent is compounded RPI
- Ground Rent review period less than or equal to 5 years

Refer to Issuing Office (Valuer will consider any impact on valuation figure and marketability):
- Unexpired lease term is 70 to 85 years
- Ground Rent greater than 0.1% and less than or equal to 0.5% of the property value
- Ground Rent escalation is linked to any indices greater than RPI
- Ground Rent escalation is linked to the value of the building*
- Ground Rent review period is greater than 5 and less than 10 years
- Event clauses exist for normal use e.g. changing the carpet, installing a TV aerial etc
- Estate Rent Charges greater than £500 p/a (please provide details of what the charges cover)
- Service Charges greater than 1.0% of property value p/a (please provide details of what the charges cover)
- Anything that appears onerous, unusual or out of the ordinary

Acceptable (no requirement to advise Issuing Office):
- Unexpired lease term greater than 85 years
- Ground Rent less than or equal to 0.1% of the property value
- Ground Rent review period greater than or equal to 10 years
- Ground Rent escalation less than or equal to RPI

NEW BUILD PROPERTIES (includes office conversions)

Unacceptable - advise Issuing Office (will be declined):
- Unexpired lease term less than 125 years on a new build flat or less than 250 years on a new build house
- Any lease which is subject to a ground rent (or annual rent) being charged which is more than on a peppercorn basis
- Any lease which is subject to a ground rent (or annual rent) being reviewed and altered on any review basis or methodology

Refer to Issuing Office (Valuer will consider any impact on valuation figure and marketability):
- Event clauses exist for normal use e.g. changing the carpet, installing a TV aerial etc
- Estate Rent Charges greater than £500 p/a (please provide details of what the charges cover)
- Service Charges greater than 1.0% of property value p/a (please provide details of what the charges cover)
- Anything else appears onerous, unusual or out of the ordinary

Acceptable (no requirement to advise Issuing Office):
- Unexpired lease term greater than or equal to 125 years on a new build flat or greater than or equal to 250 years on a new build house
- A lease subject to a peppercorn ground rent (annual rent) charges

For the avoidance of doubt, any new build properties completed but not sold pre 30 June 2022 will only be acceptable if the lease conforms to the above guidance

* Where the Ground Rent escalation is linked to the value of the building, please provide the following:
- How is the value of the block/unit currently calculated and if the assessment relates to the block(s), how is the Ground Rent calculated/apportioned per property?
- The current valuation and Ground Rent for each unit
- What is the mechanism for future valuations of the block and how is the Ground Rent calculated/apportioned?
- What is the right of appeal? And is this a documented process within the lease?
- Who bears the cost of the valuation (and appeal) process?
- Confirmation the review period is not less than twenty years

LEASE EXTENSIONS

We require all lease extensions to be completed under the Leasehold Reform Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 and to meet the above criteria as a minimum. Where you become aware that it does not meet these requirements, please refer to the Issuing Office

Please ensure that all lender enquiries are submitted (with full documentation/requirements) at least 2 weeks prior to exchange to allow sufficient time for review and decisioning.

What makes us experts in Kirkby In Furness lease extensions?

The conveyancing solicitors that we work with handle Kirkby In Furness 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.

Kirkby In Furness Lease Extension Example Cases:

Sam, Kirkby In Furness, Cumbria,

Sam owned a 2 bedroom flat in Kirkby In Furness on the market with a lease of a few days over 59 years remaining. Sam on an informal basis contacted his freeholder being a well known local-based freehold company for a lease extension. The freeholder was prepared to grant an extension on non-statutory terms taking the lease to 125 years subject to a rise in the rent to £125 annually. Ordinarily, ground rent would not be payable on a lease extension were Sam to invoke his statutory right. Sam obtained expert legal guidance and secured an acceptable deal without resorting to tribunal and ending up with a market value flat.

Kirkby In Furness case:

Mr and Mrs. A Torres completed a garden flat in Kirkby In Furness in September 2012. The dilemma was if we could estimate the premium would be to prolong the lease by a further 90 years. Comparative homes in Kirkby In Furness with 100 year plus lease were in the region of £260,000. The average ground rent payable was £50 invoiced yearly. The lease terminated on 15 January 2098. Given that there were 72 years remaining we approximated the premium to the freeholder for the lease extension to be between £9,500 and £11,000 not including legals.

Kirkby In Furness case:

Last month we were contacted by Ms A Carter , who was assigned a lease of a garden apartment in Kirkby In Furness in January 2004. The question was if we could shed any light on how much (approximately) premium could be to extend the lease by an additional years. Comparative flats in Kirkby In Furness with a long lease were valued around £256,600. The average ground rent payable was £60 invoiced monthly. The lease elapsed on 17 July 2078. Considering the 52 years remaining we approximated the premium to the landlord to extend the lease to be within £41,800 and £48,400 plus fees.